Microbiological Investigation of Harpadon nehereus and Otolithoides pama Available in Local Markets of Dhaka City, Bangladesh

This study aimed to investigate the microbiological quality of two marine fishes collected from several local markets in Dhaka City, Bangladesh: Otolithoides pama (Poa fish) and Harpadon nehereus (Bombay duck). The total viable bacterial count ranged from 6.1 × 10² to 4.4 × 10⁵ cfu/g, while coliform counts showed 40 × 10¹ to 2.03 × 10³ cfu/g, and fungal counts showed 2.7 x 10² to 8.6 x 10⁶ cfu/g, indicating high amounts of microbiological contamination from different sources. In addition, the Presence of Vibrio spp. and Staphylococcus aureus was detected, with concentrations ranging from 7.0 × 10¹ to 9.8 × 10⁷ cfu/g. The examination of an Otolithoides pama sample revealed that both species of Shigella and Salmonella occurred TNTC (too numerous to count), thus indicating a source of significant contamination. The discovery of multidrug-resistant (MDR) organisms such as Stenotrophomonas maltophilia, Acinetobacter baumannii, and Providencia alcalifaciens by biochemical characterization further brings public health issues to the foray. Antibiotic test results indicated resistance to several commonly used antibiotics, i.e., co-trimoxazole, ciprofloxacin, and ceftriaxone, which seriously threatens antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in the food chain. Hence, enhanced hygiene practices, regulatory reinforcement, and the implementation of Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points (HACCP) in fish handling, storage, and transportation are urgently needed to protect consumer safety and minimize public health impacts associated with contaminated seafood.