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Prevalence of Thermo-Tolerant Anaerobic Bacteria in Unpackaged Spices: A Bacteriological Assessment

Received: 6 August 2022     Accepted: 29 August 2022     Published: 29 December 2022
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Abstract

Spices are used all over the world for culinary purpose. Pakistanis have strong preference for them. Warm and humid condition is favorable for their growth. For this reason spices are easily contaminated by pathogenic microorganisms. Experimentations were designed to screen anaerobic bacterial presence, and to subsequently study the antibiotic sensitivity and thermo-tolerance potentials of isolated bacteria. A total of 120 spices samples were collected from fifteen different local retail markets of Karachi city. Out of which, 87.5% of the samples were found contaminated with the obligate anaerobic spore formers Clostridial spp. Results indicated that the highest load 22 (18%) of anaerobic bacterial strains were found in unpackaged black pepper powder. Metronidazole was found as the most effective antibiotic as it effectively killed all the anaerobic spp. Out of 145 bacterial isolates subjected to high temperature (90°C) for 0-60 mins, 49% (66) isolates were found to be resistant. 93% (125 out of 145) bacterial isolates withstood high temperature after 10 minutes exposure thus determining their survivability. To sum up, this study revealed the presence of temperature and antibiotic resistant bacteria in common spices, which poses a great health risk to the consumers.

Published in International Journal of Food Science and Biotechnology (Volume 7, Issue 4)
DOI 10.11648/j.ijfsb.20220704.12
Page(s) 94-99
Creative Commons

This 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 or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2022. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Spices, Anaerobes, Clostridial spp, Temperature Tolerance, Foodborne Illnesses

References
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Cite This Article
  • APA Style

    Aneela Taj, Muhammad Owais Quadri, Yasmeen, Najeeb Ullah, Saifullah Khan. (2022). Prevalence of Thermo-Tolerant Anaerobic Bacteria in Unpackaged Spices: A Bacteriological Assessment. International Journal of Food Science and Biotechnology, 7(4), 94-99. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijfsb.20220704.12

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    ACS Style

    Aneela Taj; Muhammad Owais Quadri; Yasmeen; Najeeb Ullah; Saifullah Khan. Prevalence of Thermo-Tolerant Anaerobic Bacteria in Unpackaged Spices: A Bacteriological Assessment. Int. J. Food Sci. Biotechnol. 2022, 7(4), 94-99. doi: 10.11648/j.ijfsb.20220704.12

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    AMA Style

    Aneela Taj, Muhammad Owais Quadri, Yasmeen, Najeeb Ullah, Saifullah Khan. Prevalence of Thermo-Tolerant Anaerobic Bacteria in Unpackaged Spices: A Bacteriological Assessment. Int J Food Sci Biotechnol. 2022;7(4):94-99. doi: 10.11648/j.ijfsb.20220704.12

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  • @article{10.11648/j.ijfsb.20220704.12,
      author = {Aneela Taj and Muhammad Owais Quadri and Yasmeen and Najeeb Ullah and Saifullah Khan},
      title = {Prevalence of Thermo-Tolerant Anaerobic Bacteria in Unpackaged Spices: A Bacteriological Assessment},
      journal = {International Journal of Food Science and Biotechnology},
      volume = {7},
      number = {4},
      pages = {94-99},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ijfsb.20220704.12},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijfsb.20220704.12},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijfsb.20220704.12},
      abstract = {Spices are used all over the world for culinary purpose. Pakistanis have strong preference for them. Warm and humid condition is favorable for their growth. For this reason spices are easily contaminated by pathogenic microorganisms. Experimentations were designed to screen anaerobic bacterial presence, and to subsequently study the antibiotic sensitivity and thermo-tolerance potentials of isolated bacteria. A total of 120 spices samples were collected from fifteen different local retail markets of Karachi city. Out of which, 87.5% of the samples were found contaminated with the obligate anaerobic spore formers Clostridial spp. Results indicated that the highest load 22 (18%) of anaerobic bacterial strains were found in unpackaged black pepper powder. Metronidazole was found as the most effective antibiotic as it effectively killed all the anaerobic spp. Out of 145 bacterial isolates subjected to high temperature (90°C) for 0-60 mins, 49% (66) isolates were found to be resistant. 93% (125 out of 145) bacterial isolates withstood high temperature after 10 minutes exposure thus determining their survivability. To sum up, this study revealed the presence of temperature and antibiotic resistant bacteria in common spices, which poses a great health risk to the consumers.},
     year = {2022}
    }
    

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  • TY  - JOUR
    T1  - Prevalence of Thermo-Tolerant Anaerobic Bacteria in Unpackaged Spices: A Bacteriological Assessment
    AU  - Aneela Taj
    AU  - Muhammad Owais Quadri
    AU  - Yasmeen
    AU  - Najeeb Ullah
    AU  - Saifullah Khan
    Y1  - 2022/12/29
    PY  - 2022
    N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijfsb.20220704.12
    DO  - 10.11648/j.ijfsb.20220704.12
    T2  - International Journal of Food Science and Biotechnology
    JF  - International Journal of Food Science and Biotechnology
    JO  - International Journal of Food Science and Biotechnology
    SP  - 94
    EP  - 99
    PB  - Science Publishing Group
    SN  - 2578-9643
    UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijfsb.20220704.12
    AB  - Spices are used all over the world for culinary purpose. Pakistanis have strong preference for them. Warm and humid condition is favorable for their growth. For this reason spices are easily contaminated by pathogenic microorganisms. Experimentations were designed to screen anaerobic bacterial presence, and to subsequently study the antibiotic sensitivity and thermo-tolerance potentials of isolated bacteria. A total of 120 spices samples were collected from fifteen different local retail markets of Karachi city. Out of which, 87.5% of the samples were found contaminated with the obligate anaerobic spore formers Clostridial spp. Results indicated that the highest load 22 (18%) of anaerobic bacterial strains were found in unpackaged black pepper powder. Metronidazole was found as the most effective antibiotic as it effectively killed all the anaerobic spp. Out of 145 bacterial isolates subjected to high temperature (90°C) for 0-60 mins, 49% (66) isolates were found to be resistant. 93% (125 out of 145) bacterial isolates withstood high temperature after 10 minutes exposure thus determining their survivability. To sum up, this study revealed the presence of temperature and antibiotic resistant bacteria in common spices, which poses a great health risk to the consumers.
    VL  - 7
    IS  - 4
    ER  - 

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Author Information
  • Centres of Excellence in Science and Applied Technologies (CESAT), Islamabad, Pakistan

  • Centres of Excellence in Science and Applied Technologies (CESAT), Islamabad, Pakistan

  • Centres of Excellence in Science and Applied Technologies (CESAT), Islamabad, Pakistan

  • Centres of Excellence in Science and Applied Technologies (CESAT), Islamabad, Pakistan

  • Centres of Excellence in Science and Applied Technologies (CESAT), Islamabad, Pakistan

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