Occurrence and antimicrobial susceptibility of Bacillus cereus, isolated from RTE foods in Republic of Kosovo
Driton Sylejmani
, Avni Robaj
, Mentor Alishani
Abstract: The aim of this study was to investigate the presence of B. cereus and antimicrobial susceptibility isolates from ready-to-eat-foods. A total of 150 samples of ready-to-eat-foods were collected from different restaurants in Kosovo. Samples were examined for the isolation and enumeration of Bacillus cereus. Serial dilutions of the samples were carried out, and cultured on Mannitol Egg Yolk Polymyxin Agar (MYP), using the spread plate technique. B. cereus was confirmed with standard biochemical methods. Out of the 150 RTE food samples examined, 44 (29.3%) samples were positive for Bacillus cereus. Based on food safety criteria and our results, out of 44 positive samples with B. cereus of the RTE foods examined, 41% were considered good, 36.3% satisfactory, and 13.3% unsatisfactory. Antibiotic susceptibility was performed by the Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion method. Generally, Bacillus cereus isolates expressed high resistance to penicillin, ampicillin and amoxicillin/clavulanic acid, while high sensitivity to amikacin, chloramphenicol, gentamicin, followed by erythromycin, ciprofloxacin, tetracycline, and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole. Our study indicates the contamination levels of B. cereus isolated from RTE foods, and demonstrates the potential hazards of B. cereus in RTE foods in Kosovo.
Keywords: antimicrobial susceptibility; Bacillus cereus; enumeration; occurrence
Citation: Sylejmani, D., Robaj, A. & Alishani, M. (2025). Occurrence and antimicrobial susceptibility of Bacillus cereus, isolated from RTE foods in Republic of Kosovo. Bulg. J. Agric. Sci., 31(4), 841–846.
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| Date published: 2025-08-27
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