Study of some microbiological quality of bivalves and their water beds along the Mediterranean coast of Egypt

There is a much concern about shellfish safety which harvested from quite shallow locations along the Mediterranean coast of Egypt. Investigation of some microbiological properties of the collected bivalves and their water... [ view full abstract ]

There is a much concern about shellfish safety which harvested from quite shallow locations along the Mediterranean coast of Egypt.
Investigation of some microbiological properties of the collected bivalves and their water beds, surface and bottom, areas was done during four seasonal sampling cruises from March, 2014 to February, 2015 at eleven stations. All samples were analyzed for the total plate count, fecal pollution indicators bacteria (total coliforms, E.coli, and fecal streptococci) and the prevalence of three emerging food-borne pathogens including Listeria monocytogenes, Campylobacter and E.coli 0157:H7. In addition, some environmental parameters of the coastal water samples including temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen and pH were also measured.
Sampling techniques were done according to IOS standers and the membrane filtration technique was applied using the total plate count agar and the respective selective media. Identification using the biochemical tests was done and the final counts were calculated as cfu/100ml/gm water/meat.
Fecal pollution bacterial counts, ranged from <1 to 105 of all the detected microorganisms, depend on the investigated area and dates of sampling. The incidence of Listeria monocytogenes in the examined water samples varied widely from 10 to 18%. Campylobacter was found in percentages of 9 to 20%. E.coli 0157:H7 was detected in 12 to 25% of the investigated locations. There was an association between the fecal contamination indicators and the presence of the studied pathogens. The same trend was observed in the oyster meat samples. These results may help to develop sanitary strategy / strategies for better Mollusca shellfish safety.