Clostridioides difficile in food and food products of animal origin in Assam, India

Abstract

Objective: Considering the paucity of information about food-associated Clostridioides difficile from India, a study was undertaken to establish the prevalence of C. difficile in a variety of foods of animal origin, together with molecular strain characterization and antimicrobial resistance.

Methods: A total of 235 samples comprising raw meat and meat products, fish products, and milk and milk products were screened for C. difficile. Toxin genes and other parts of PaLoc were amplified in isolated strains. The resistance pattern towards commonly used antimicrobial agents was studied by the Epsilometric test.

Results: C. difficile was isolated from 17(7.23%) different food samples of animal origin, including toxigenic (6) and non-toxigenic (11) isolates. In four toxigenic strains, the tcdA gene could not be detected under used conditions (tcdA-tcdB+). However, all strains had binary toxin-associated genes (cdtA and cdtB). The antimicrobial resistance was highest in non-toxigenic C. difficile isolates in food of animal origin.

Conclusion: Meat, meat products and dry fish, but not milk and milk products were contaminated with C. difficile. Contamination rates were low with diverse toxin profiles and antibiotic resistance patterns among the C. difficile strains.

Keywords: Antibiotic resistance; Clostridioides difficile; India; Meat; Milk; fish.