Detection and Antimicrobial Resistance Profiling of Coliforms Isolated from Fresh Vegetables in Lahore, Pakistan

Abstract

Vegetables are among the finest sources of high-quality nutrients including, carbohydrates, vitamins, fibers and minerals, having beneficial health effects. However consuming raw vegetables obtained from retailer shops renders them a reservoir of pathogenic bacteria due to unhygienic production, storage, and handling practices, and could be a major route of antibiotics resistance dissemination. The present work aimed at the evaluation of fresh vegetables for total microbial load and coliforms presence and determination antibiotic susceptibility of the isolated strains. The selective media were used for the targeted isolation of coliforms and antimicrobial resistance profiling of the isolates was performed using
disc diffusion assay to determine the current resistance patterns of the bacterial isolates. Escherichia coli and Salmonella were the top isolated strains from the vegetable and salad samples. The antimicrobial resistance patterns showed an increased resistance to most of the tested antibiotics highlighting the critical issue of the dissemination of antibiotics resistance through common food items. The frequent presence of coliforms in the fresh vegetables and salads indicate suitable environmental conditions in the area for opportunistic pathogens and other harmful microorganisms to grow and dwell in the frequently consumed food items. The study highlighted the importance and need for proper cooking practices for vegetables before consumption and emphasizes the minimal use of partially cooked or uncooked vegetables