This study attempts to present the antimicrobial resistance, virulence and resistance genes of Enterococcus faecalis and Enterococcus faecium isolated from raw goat's and sheep's milk and cheese. Strains were identified by PCR. The dominant species was E. faecalis (77.8%) and was most often isolated from raw goat's milk. The percentage of antimicrobial-resistant E. faecalis isolates was higher than that of E. faecium isolates, the former most frequently resistant to lincomycin (98%), tetracycline (63%) and streptomycin (16%). Fourteen (22.3%) E. faecalis and 2 (11.1%) E. faecium isolates were identified as multidrug-resistant (MDR). All MDR E. faecalis strains also had virulence genes, whereas one of the two E. faecium strains had them. The most prevalent virulence genes in E. faecalis isolates were asa1 (69.8%) and gelE (57.1%). The most prevalent resistance genes found in both bacterial species were tet(M) (43.2%) and vgaA (22.2%). Enterococci from dairy products are confirmed to be a potential source of the spread of antimicrobial resistance, MDR strains, and virulence and resistance genes. This study highlights several aspects of the virulence and pathogenicity of E. faecalis and E. faecium isolated from dairy products-aspects which are indications for their ongoing monitoring.
Keywords: Enterococcus faecalis; Enterococcus faecium; MDR; antimicrobial resistance; dairy; multidrug resistant strains; resistance genes; virulence genes.