Milk is a highly nutritious food that serves as an excellent growth medium for a wide range of foodborne pathogens, among which Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) is one of the most important pathogens found worldwide over the past few decades. Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) is a ubiquitous gram-positive coccus that is a non-motile, non-spore-forming, oxidase-negative, hemolytic, catalase-positive and coagulase-positive and facultative anaerobic bacteria. Milk is a highly nutritious food that serves as an excellent growth medium for a wide range of foodborne pathogens (Richter et al., 1992).
Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) has become one of the most important pathogens in recent decades. Furthermore, milk is mainly produced by individuals on small farms where proper sanitary measures are lacking and can either be consumed fresh, processed into dairy products or sold in retail markets, alarming as a major source of staphylococcal enterotoxin poisoning (El-Sayed et al., 2011) and pose a serious problem for human health. These growth characteristics allow the bacterium to grow in a wide variety of foods, including raw milk (Jorgensen, Mork, Hogasen, & Rovik, 2005), dairy products (Headrick et al., 1998), chicken, pork, beef, and salad dishes (Bryan, 1998) and causes food poisoning due to the secretion of enterotoxins that appear approximately 3 hours after ingestion (range 1-6 hours) to 24 hours (Balaban and Rasooly, 2000).
The aim of this communication is to review the published literature on the most likely sources and transmission of S. The search was further expanded by internet searches using the keywords “SA in milk and milk product”, “transmission”, “ dynamics” and in Google Scholar and Google search engine. Only articles that describe the “Transmission of Staphylococcus aureus in milk and milk products” or relate to “epidemiological transmission routes of Staphylococcus aureus in milk and milk products” are included in this overview.
To finalize articles included in this study, the author read the full text of the shortlisted publications and excluded articles that did not fit the context of this review.
Results and Discussion
Bacteria are spread to uninfected neighborhoods by breast cup liners, nursing hands, washcloths, and flies (Abebe et al., 2016). Furthermore, the lack of dry cow therapy regimen may be among the main factors contributing to the higher prevalence of S.aureus in early lactation. It is clear that the failure of the last milk of mastitic cows would favor the spread of mastitis pathogens between cows from the milker's hands resulting in contagious mastitis and transmission of S.aureus in milk (Belayneh et al., 2016; Abebe et al. .2016).
According to Previous study, PFGE (Pulse-Field Gel Electrophoresis) analysis revealed that linings can be contaminated with S. aureus from teat skin and with S. Vectors such as the housefly (Musca domestica) are also involved in the transmission of S. Milk is considered a suitable medium for S. The difference in the incidence rates of S. aureus between milk and milk products may arise from the method of production, storage and handling. 20 | Page . such as bulk tank cleaning, storage condition, man, equipment, processing stages and processing environment, etc. is largely responsible for the transmission of S.aureus in milk product at the production level. a) Bulk milk tank.
Contamination of milk storage containers/improper cleaning of bulk milk tanks was found to be a possible source of transmission of enterotoxigenic S. aureus in milk and milk products and may pose a health hazard to consumers. However, the type of pasteurizer did not affect the number of bacteria after pasteurization, log reduction, or percent log reduction (P > 0.05) for any of the bacteria studied (Jorgensen et al., 2006). Traditional milk preparation activities have proven to be unhygienic and consequently exposed to microbial contamination (Yilma et al., 2007).
Similarly, a significant relationship was found between the occurrence of Staphylococcus aureus in locally pasteurized milk (kindirmo) and the type of water used to clean utensils at the product's points of sale (Yakubu et al., 2020). Hand washing is a basic component of transmission control at the production and marketing level (Larson et al., 2003). c) Absence of sanitary inspection. The occurrence of the organism in this processed food implies recontamination during and/or after processing (Yakubu et al., 2020).
Additional measures to reduce the incidence of post-pasteurization contamination include separating the raw milk from the finished dairy products, along with adequate sanitation (A. Abdel-Hameid Ahmed et al., 2019). For example, street vendors put kareish cheese in pans exposed to dust and flies (Zakary et al., 2011). The isolation of Staphylococcus aureus from fresh and fermented milk is a cause for public health concern because many people in the area consume the products. aureus was significantly higher in cafeteria and restaurant samples than in other outlets.
This situation may arise because the initial S. aureus load from the farm may multiply during transportation, because cold chain facilities are not available at all outlets, or because more S. aureus, from human sources, may contaminate the milk due to poor personal and/or equipment hygiene throughout the value chain. The findings of this work lend credence to the claim that dairy product outlets are one of the major vehicles for the transmission of S. aureus to dairy products. The occurrence of Staphylococcus aureus in the study area is an indication of poor or missing public health measures (Akram et al., 2013).
The unsanitary conditions in the places where the products are marketed may also have contributed to their contamination (Yakubu et al., 2020).
Conclusion and recommendations
Limitations
Occurrence of Staphylococcus aureus in a farm with small-scale production of raw milk cheese. Transmission and persistence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in milk, environment and workers on dairy farms. Prevalence and susceptibility patterns associated with the presence of Staphylococcus Aureus in marketed milk and milk products.
Foodborne pathogens in milk and the dairy farm environment: food safety and public health implications. Epidemiology, Pathogenicity, Animal Infections, Antibiotic Resistance, Public Health Importance, and Economic Impact of Staphylococcus Aureus: A Comprehensive Review. Isolation of Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Listeria monocytogenes from milk products sold under market conditions in Agra region.
Staphylococcus aureus and other Staphylococcus species in milk and milk products from Tigray region, Northern Ethiopia. Isolation and identification of Staphylococcus aureus from milk and milk products and their drug resistance patterns in Anand, Gujarat. Segregation or use of separate milking units for cows infected with Staphylococcus aureus: effects on incidence of infection and somatic cell count of the bulk tank.
Prevalence and antibiotic susceptibility profile of Staphylococcus aureus from milk and milk products in Nasarawa State, Nigeria. Comparison of Staphylococcus aureus isolates from bovine and human skin, milking equipment and bovine milk by phage typing, pulsed-field gel electrophoresis and binary typing.
Acknowledgements
