Isolation of Enterobacter spp. and Klebsiella pneumoniae from ready-to-eat commercially sold frozen nuggets sold in Dhaka

Abstract

This study aimed to assess the microbiological quality of frozen foods that are currently very popular in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The demand for Ready-to-Cook (RTC) frozen foods have drawn public attention dramatically all over the world, but in recent years various bacterial contamination is being detected from the frozen foods which are the cause of food spoilage and food-borne diseases. Among those various bacteria that are pathogenic, the study aimed for detecting the presence of coliform bacteria that is more specifically Enterobacter spp. and Klebsiella pneumoniae. These two types of bacteria were isolated from two different branded frozen nuggets through proper preservation and transportation methods, which was followed by proper sample collection, processing, isolation and identification. For the purpose, both the culture-based method and Most Probable Number method (MPN) method was performed and then further continued by gram staining for morphological identification, biochemical tests, Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR), Agarose based Gel Electrophoresis, Sequencing and then lastly the Antibiotic Susceptibility testing (AST). After performing all the methodologies mentioned above, from Sample 1, 13 isolates of Enterobacter spp. and from the Sample 2, 7 isolates of Klebsiella pneumoniae were obtained. However, more in depth research is needed on the factor of isolation of Enterobacter spp. from frozen nuggets for future aspects.