Prevalence of Multidrug Resistant Bacillus cereus in Foods and Human Stool Samples in and Around Pantnagar, Uttrakhand

Abstract

.A total number of 63 samples out of 505 samples were found to be positive for Bacillus cereus. The positive samples comprised of 29 samples of human stool, 10 of milk, 23 of meat and meat products origin. These positive isolates were tested against 13 different commonly used antibiotics by the disc diffusion method. Antibiogram pattern of these 63 isolates indicated multidrug resistance. B. cereus isolates showed a high rate of resistance to Carbenicillin, Kanamycin and Ampicillin and intermediate frequency of resistance to Amoxicillin and Cephalothin. All the isolates irrespective of their source were resistant to Bacitracin and Penicillin G and sensitive to Aminoglycosides (Gentamycin, Neomycin and Streptomycin) and Chloramphenicol. However, variable resistance patterns were also recorded in B. cereus isolates obtained from different origin, which is suggestive of source-associated resistance. It can be inferred from the above study that presence of multidrug resistant B. cereus in animal-origin food and environment in such high proportion is of public health significance.