METHICILLIN AND VANCOMYCIN RESISTANCE PROFILES OF STAHPYLOCOCCUS AUREUS ISOLATED FROM BOVINE COWS MASTITIC MILK SAMPLES

S. aureus may cause public health problems due to its contamination with animal products such as milk and raw milk products, called Milk-borne Disease (MBD). In this study, it was aimed to determine the prevalence of S. aureus and the presence of methicillin and vancomycin resistance in S. aureus isolates in dairy cows’ milk samples in different region of Balıkesir province, which is have high cow milk production in Türkiye. One hundred seven cow milk samples collected from various private dairy farms by veterinarians and sent to the laboratory for microbiological examination for mastitis infection in Balıkesir province between September 2021 and May 2022 were examined in this study. For the isolation and identification of S. aureus, milk samples were first shaken slowly for homogenization and then inoculated to and were incubated at 37°C for up to 48 hours. Methicillin and vancomycin resistance profiles of S. aureus (n:15) isolates was investigated and evaluated phenotypically according to European Committee of Antimicrobial Susceptability Testing (EUCAST) standards. Methicillin resistance in S. aureus isolates was also investigated by PCR in terms of mecA and mecC genes. Methicillin resistance was determined phenotypically in 5 of 15 (33.3%) S. aureus isolates by disc diffusion test according to EUCAST procedure, while Vancomycin resistance was not detected in all isolated S. aureus strains by MIC E-test. By PCR method, mecC gene was detected in all MRSA strains (n:5), while mecA gene was not detected. It was thought that the isolates determined to be MRSA phenotypically should also be analyzed in terms of the mecC gene and the detection of the mecC gene in all MRSA isolates emphasized the importance of this situation.