Mycological evaluation of frozen meat with special reference to yeasts

Vet World Vol.16 March-2023 Article-18

Research Article

Veterinary World, 16(3): 571-579

https://doi.org/10.14202/vetworld.2023.571-579

Hams M. A. Mohamed¹, Sulaiman F. Aljasir², Rofida F. Moftah³, and Waleed Younis¹

1. Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, South Valley University, Qena, Egypt.
2. Department of Veterinary Medicine, College of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Qassim University, Buraydah, Saudi Arabia.
3. Department of Food Science and Technology, Faculty of Agriculture, Assiut University, Assiut, Egypt.

Background and Aim: Fungi can play beneficial and detrimental roles in meat products; however, the diversity and significance of fungi in meat products are poorly understood. This study aimed to isolate and characterize fungal species from frozen beef samples collected from retail stores in the Qena Governorate, Egypt.

Materials and Methods: A total of 70 frozen beef samples were collected from retail stores in Qena, Egypt. All samples were subjected to mycological examination. Fungal colonies were identified using conventional approaches, as well as the VITEK 2 system and DNA sequencing of the internal transcribed spacer region. Analyses of enzymatic activity, biofilm formation ability, and the antimicrobial resistance profiles of the isolated yeasts were also conducted.

Results: Molds and yeasts were isolated from 40% and 60% of meat samples, respectively. Mold isolates were dominated by Aspergillus, Penicillium, and Cladosporium spp., whereas yeast isolates were identified as Candida albicans, Candida parapsilosis, Yarrowia lipolytica, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and Rhodotorula mucilaginosa. Compared to other yeast species, the highest production of lipase and protease was observed in Candida species. The strongest ability to form biofilms was observed in Candida spp., followed by S. cerevisiae, Y. lipolytica, and R. mucilaginosa. The results of antimicrobial susceptibility testing revealed that all yeast isolates showed notable resistance to fluconazole and itraconazole.

Conclusion: A significant correlation between antimicrobial resistance and biofilm formation was observed in several species. This study highlights the importance of the dangers of yeasts in food products and the extent of their impact on public health. Keywords: antimicrobial resistance, beef, biofilm, enzymatic activities, fungi, meat, yeast.

Keywords: antimicrobial resistance, beef, biofilm, enzymatic activities, fungi, meat, yeast.

How to cite this article: Mohamed HMA, Aljasir SF, Moftah RF, and Younis W (2023) Mycological evaluation of frozen meat with special reference to yeasts, Veterinary World, 16(3): 571-579.

Received: 16-11-2022 Accepted: 30-01-2023 Published online: 22-03-2023

Corresponding author: Waleed Younis E-mail: walid-younas@vet.svu.edu.eg

DOI: 10.14202/vetworld.2023.571-579

Copyright: Mohamed HMA, et al. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http:// creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.