Abstract:
Raw salad vegetables have become very popular among consumers due to their
multiple health benefits. The bacteriological quality of these salad vegetables is
of great public health concern. This study was conducted to determine the
presence of potential pathogenic and multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacteria in raw
salad vegetables served in different restaurants in Dhaka, the capital city of
Bangladesh. A total of 50 samples, comprising different types of raw salad
vegetables were collected from restaurants in Mirpur (n=10), Dhanmondi
(n=10), Old Dhaka (n=10), Gulshan (n=10) and Bashundhara Residential Area
(n=10). The highest counts for total coliforms and fecal coliforms were 4.02 ×
103 cfu/ml and 1.3×10 3 cfu/ml, respectively. The isolates were E. coli, total
coliform, fecal coliform and Salmonella spp. Among them, fecal coliform and
Salmonella spp. were found to be more pathogenic. As potential pathogenic
bacteria, Salmonella spp. were tested for antibiotic sensitivity and all of them
showed resistance against amoxicillin, ampicillin, azithromycin,
chloramphenicol, ciprofloxacin, erythromycin, kanamycin, streptomycin,
tetracycline, norfloxacin, and trimethoprim. The findings assist to understand
the level of contamination of pathogenic and MDR bacteria in raw salad
vegetables, which will create awareness of food safety and public health.
