Investigation on marine Staphylococcus spp. isolated from the Sinop coastal areas, the Black Sea in Türkiye serves as a reservoir for antibiotic resistance genes

Epidemiological surveillance of the Staphylococci genus, which harbours strains with high morbidity and mortality rates, is a crucial step in detecting and preventing diseases and disease agents. This study aimed to isolate, characterise, and screen some antibiotic resistance genes of possible Staphylococcus spp. strains from seawater samples taken from three points in Sinop, which is suitable for swimming from almost every point. Classical microbiological techniques were used for the isolation and possible identification of the strains. A fragment of the 16S rRNA gene region (216 bp) was amplified and analysed by the SSCP technique to determine their diversity among themselves. For antibiotic resistance genes, both classical PCR and multiplex PCR techniques were used. As a result, 29 probable Staphylococcus spp. strains were isolated, and according to SSCP analysis, it was determined that the strains had a similarity rate of 50% or more among themselves and within the scope of different stations. In addition, mecA, ermA, ermB, ermC, tetK, tetM, and blaZ resistance genes of the strains were observed as 8 (27.5%), 3 (10.3%), 2 (6.8%), 2 (6.8%), 14 (48.2%), 27 (93.1%) and 29 (100%), respectively. Furthermore, mecA was positively correlated with ermB and ermB was positively correlated with ermC at the p < 0.05 significance level. In comparison, ermB was negatively correlated with tetM at the p < 0.05 significance level. In conclusion, the presence of Staphylococcus spp. strains, which are reservoirs of antibiotic resistance genes and have the potential to transfer these genes to other bacteria through gene transfer, have been shown in this study to be prevalent in marine environments, where they can be easily transmitted. The importance of taking precautions has been emphasised.