LAUSR

ABSTRACT This study aimed to provide information about the characteristics of Staphylococcus aureus strains isolated from traditional Turkish cheese samples in Ankara (Turkey), focusing on their prevalence, phenotypic and genotypic characteristics, and antibiotic resistance. To this end, 387 cheese samples were randomly collected from various local bazaars and supermarkets. A total of 85 S. aureus isolates were identified by morphological, biochemical and molecular methods. In addition, the strains were screened for enterotoxin production. None of the strains was confirmed as being enterotoxigenic. The strains were tested for resistance to 29 different antimicrobial agents using the phenotyping agar diffusion method. The strains showed a high level of resistance (60–84.71%) to penicillin, ampicillin, and oxacillin. Furthermore, resistance to lincomycin, cefoxitin, clindamycin was also observed, although at slightly lower levels (50.59–57.65%). Additionally, low-level resistance (1.4–48.8%) was observed against gentamicin, methicillin, kanamycin, streptomycin, cefepime, erythromycin, teicoplanin, rifampicin, vancomycin, cefazolin, netilmicin, sulfadimethoxazole, ofloxacin, enrofloxacin, tetracycline, ciprofloxacin, azithromycin, trimethoprim, and norfloxacin. None of the strains was resistant to doxycycline, linezolid, furazolidone, and chloramphenicol. About 72.94% of S. aureus strains were resistant to multiple drugs. Our results suggest that the presence of a high level of multidrug-resistant S. aureus strains in traditional Turkish cheese is not safe for human consumption. Therefore, uncontrolled use of antibiotics should be prevented in veterinary medicine.