Biotyping and enterotoxigenicity of Staphylococci isolated from fresh and frozen meat marketed in Jordan

A total of 286 fresh and processed meat samples marketed in Jordan were collected for isolation and typing of Staphylococci. Devriese’s system was followed for biotyping of the isolated Staphylococcus aureus subsp. aureus and enterotoxigenicity of the isolates was also determined. S. aureus subsp. aureus was found in 80.8% of the samples. Means counts for meats of the various sources ranged from 5.3 × 102 to 4.3 × 104 cfu/g. However, only 33.6% of the samples had coagulase positive Staphylococci. Biotyping of S. aureus subsp. aureus isolates revealed that 12%, 24%, 8%, and 27% are human, bovine, ovine and non-host specific biovars, respectively. Only 28% of these isolates, of unknown type, were isolated from goat’s meat. Enterotoxigenic S. aureus subsp. aureus isolates accounted for 13.5% of a total of 231 Staphylococci. The non-S. aureus enterotoxigenic isolates were identified as Staphylococcus epidermidis, Staphylococcus sciuri and Staphylococcus intermedius. Staphylococci enterotoxin types A, C, and B accounted for 57%, 36% and 7% of the isolated S. aureus subsp. aureus, respectively. This study showed that the enterotoxigenic Staphylococci represent a potential hazard in meat and the Devriese’s biotyping system needs to be extended to accommodate the isolates of unknown type.