Antibiotic resistance of lactic acid bacteria isolated from dry-fermented sausages

• Antibiotic resistant lactic acid bacteria have been isolated from dry-fermented sausages.
• Interventions at processing level are difficult to prevent the presence of antibiotic resistant strains.
• Care must be taken regarding antibiotic-resistance expressed by strains intended to be use as starters.
• Acquired resistance on strains mediated by mobile genes may put at risk the public health.
• Risk management strategies for food chain are crucial to avoid antibiotic resistant lactic acid bacteria.

Dry-fermented sausages are meat products highly valued by many consumers. Manufacturing process involves fermentation driven by natural microbiota or intentionally added starter cultures and further drying. The most relevant fermentative microbiota is lactic acid bacteria (LAB) such as Lactobacillus, Pediococcus and Enterococcus, producing mainly lactate and contributing to product preservation. The great diversity of LAB in dry-fermented sausages is linked to manufacturing practices. Indigenous starters development is considered to be a very promising field, because it allows for high sanitary and sensorial quality of sausage production.LAB have a long history of safe use in fermented food, however, since they are present in human gastrointestinal tract, and are also intentionally added to the diet, concerns have been raised about the antimicrobial resistance in these beneficial bacteria. In fact, the food chain has been recognized as one of the key routes of antimicrobial resistance transmission from animal to human bacterial populations. The World Health Organization 2014 report on global surveillance of antimicrobial resistance reveals that this issue is no longer a future prediction, since evidences establish a link between the antimicrobial drugs use in food-producing animals and the emergence of resistance among common pathogens. This poses a risk to the treatment of nosocomial and community-acquired infections. This review describes the possible sources and transmission routes of antibiotic resistant LAB of dry-fermented sausages, presenting LAB antibiotic resistance profile and related genetic determinants. Whenever LAB are used as starters in dry-fermented sausages processing, safety concerns regarding antimicrobial resistance should be addressed since antibiotic resistant genes could be mobilized and transferred to other bacteria.