ABSTRACT

This study was carried out to determine the prevalence of enteric bacteria present in ready-to-eat suya meat and evaluate the antibacterial activity of Tetrapleura tetraptera (gum tree) root extract on the enteric bacteria isolates. Ready to eat Suya meats were purchased from six different locations within Benin City metropolis and transported to the laboratory for bacteriological assessment following standard procedures. The bacteriological assessment was carried out using membrane filtration, identification of the isolates was done using biochemical methods, phenotypic virulence properties were evaluated for the isolates and antimicrobial sensitivity was carried out using biodisc diffusion method. The results showed that the identified bacterial isolates were Morgenella spp., Enterobacter aerogenes, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella oxytoca and Bacillus subtili.The most frequently occurring bacterial isolates from the suya samples were Escherichia coli (36.9%) and Bacillus subtilis (16.8%). The antibacterial susceptibility testing showed that all isolates were susceptible to gentamycin and ciprofloxacin but were also resistant to erythromycin and tetracyclines. It was also evident that all isolates were found to have an MAR index greater than 0.2 which means that the isolates were all pathogens of public health importance. The plant extract also showed good antibacterial properties against the bacteria isolates. This study therefore highlights the need for continuous monitoring and quality assessment of ready-to-eat suya meat to enhance the elimination of pathogenic bacteria.