Evaluation of antibiotic resistance of Enterococcus isolates from Kurdish traditional cheese against common therapeutic antibiotics and their hemolytic and gelatinase activity

Dual properties of Enterococcus on the one hand, have made them suitable and accepted bacteria as starter cultures in the production of food products and probiotics, but on the other hand, because of antibiotic resistance properties and virulence factors, has resulted in concerns about the consumer’s health. In this study, in order to evaluate the antibiotic resistance of enterococcal isolates, the disk diffusion method was used. Also, culture-based method was applied for hemolytic and gelatinase activities. The results of the inhibition zone of Enterococcus isolates against common clinical antibiotics revealed that the isolates were sensitive to Vancomycin and Ampicillin and are resistant to Kanamycin and Streptomycin. The isolates showed very little resistance to Tetracycline and Chloramphenicol and none of the isolates were resistant to all tested antibiotics. Results obtained from hemolytic activity of isolates showed that none of examined isolates were capable of blood hemolysis and consequently no clear zone of inhibition in medium containing sheep’s blood. All of isolated were γ hemolytic and they have no hemolytic activity. Gelatinase activity results confirmed that none of the isolates are able to produce clear zone in tryptone soy agar containing gelatin.