Antimicrobial Resistance of Enterococcus sp. Isolated from Sheep and Goat Cheeses

Abstract

This study aimed to calculate the proportion of antibiotic resistance profiles of <i>Enterococcus faecium</i>, <i>E. faecalis,</i> and <i>E. durans</i> isolated from traditional sheep and goat cheeses obtained from a selected border area of Slovakia with Hungary (region Slanské vrchy). A total of 110 <i>Enterococcus</i> sp. were isolated from cheese samples, of which 52 strains (<i>E. faecium</i> (12), <i>E. faecalis</i> (28), <i>E. durans</i> (12)) were represented. After isolation and identification by polymerase chain reaction and matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-time-of-flight mass spectrometry, the enterococci (<i>E. faecium, E. faecalis</i>, and <i>E. durans</i>) were submitted to susceptibility tests against nine antimicrobial agents. In general, strains of <i>E. faecalis</i> were more resistant than <i>E. durans</i> and <i>E. faecium</i>. A high percentage of resistance was noted in <i>E. faecalis</i> to rifampicin (100%), vancomycin (85.7%), teicoplanin (71.4%), erythromycin (71.4%), minocycline (57.1%), nitrofurantoin (57.1%), ciprofloxacin (14.3%), and levofloxacin (14.3%). <i>E. durans</i> showed resistance to rifampicin (100%), teicoplanin (100%), vancomycin (66.7%), erythromycin (66.7%), nitrofurantoin (66.7%), and minocycline (33.3%), and <i>E. faecium</i> showed resistance to vancomycin, teicoplanin, and erythromycin (100%). Multidrug-resistant strains were confirmed in 80% of the 52 strains in this study. Continuous identification of <i>Enterococcus</i> sp. and monitoring of their incidence and emerging antibiotic resistance is important in order to prevent a potential risk to public health caused by the contamination of milk and other dairy products, such as cheeses, made on farm level.