Premium
Occurrence of foodborne pathogenic bacteria in retail prepackaged portions of marine fish in Spain
Author(s) -
Herrera F.C.,
Santos J.A.,
Otero A.,
GarcíaLópez M.L.
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
journal of applied microbiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.889
H-Index - 156
eISSN - 1365-2672
pISSN - 1364-5072
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2672.2005.02848.x
Subject(s) - biology , vibrio parahaemolyticus , microbiology and biotechnology , listeria monocytogenes , aeromonas , edwardsiella tarda , vibrio , clostridium perfringens , salmonella , virulence , bacteria , food science , fishery , fish <actinopterygii> , biochemistry , genetics , gene
Aims: To survey the presence of indigenous and nonindigenous foodborne bacterial pathogens in displayed prepacked portions of fresh marine fish. Methods and Results: A survey of 50 different samples of fresh marine fish (conger, swordfish, sole, grouper and whiting) was conducted over a period of 5 months. Trays of fillets and steaks were obtained at retail level and tested for foodborne bacterial pathogens. Vibrio cholerae and Salmonella were not detected. Two samples (4%) yielded Vibrio strains carrying a DNA fragment specific for Vibrio parahaemolyticus , but resulted negative to PCR amplification of the virulence‐related tdh gene. Levels of motile Aeromonas ranging from 2·29 to 7·20 log CFU g −1 were found in 31 (62%) samples. All fish portions were positive for the Aeromonas hly A gene and 38 for both aer A and hly A genes, which may contribute to diarrhoea‐related virulence. The incidence of Listeria monocytogenes was 10%. Levels of Staphylococcus aureus lower than 2 log CFU g −1 were found in 15 (30%) samples. Numbers of presumptive Clostridium perfringens ranging from 1·82 ± 0·22 to 4·26 ± 1·25 log CFU g −1 were detected in 42 (84%) samples. Edwardsiella tarda was detected in two samples of grouper fillets. Conclusions: Displayed portions of raw fish carried bacteria that can cause foodborne disease. The risk posed by fresh fish when properly cooked is low, but high when destined to be consumed raw, undercooked or very lightly processed. Significance and Impact of the Study: This study revealed that raw fish sold in Spain could be a source of foodborne bacterial pathogens. Improvements in handling and processing are needed to minimize the prevalence of pathogenic bacteria.