PHENOTYPIC AND GENOTYPIC CHARACTERIZATION OF STAPHYLOCOCCUS AUREUS ISOLATES FROM POULTRY

Only fifty samples of poultry source from different farms were used in this study to isolate Staphylococcus species and to determine the presence of coagulase (coa) gene,a virulence gene detected in S. aureus by PCR. Primary isolation on mannitol salt agar, haemolysis, baird parker, tube coagulase test (TCT) and other biochemical characterization revealed that 24% (12/50) of the total samples were infected with staphylococci from nasal swab source and 20% (10/50) from poultry meat. Only6 isolates werebiotyped as staphylococcus aureus and represented as 12% from staphylococci samples from nasal swab and 4 isolates from poultry meat source represented as 8% were subjected to analysis by PCR for detection of coa gene. The difference in coagulase activity and recovery of coa gene from tested isolates indicated that there are other factor in S.aureuscan control the coagulation activity such as vonwillbrand factor binding protein (vWbp)