Prevalence of S. aureus in nostrils and buccal mucosa of camels from Gran Canaria Island

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of Staphylococcus aureus in camels from Gran Canaria island. Samples were collected from nostrils and buccal mucosa of 32 camels. The swabs were inoculated into BHI (broth containing 6.5% NaCl and incubated for 24 h at37°C. The inoculum was seeded onto Mannitol Salt agar and Baird-Parker agar plates. One presumptive S. aureus colony was recovered from each plate and confirmed by Gram staining, coagulase, DNase and catalase tests. Sixteen (50%) S. aureus were isolated from camels. A higher number of isolates were recovered from oral samples (n=9) than from nasal samples (n=7). None of the animals were positive for both nasal and oral samples. A high rate of S. aureus was found in samples of camels. Therefore, these animals may act as a reservoir of S. aureus which can carry many antimicrobial resistance determinants that could be a risk for humans in contact with camels, in particular, tourists that visit the island and go on camel rides. Further studies, including the antimicrobial resistance, virulence and genetic lineages will be carried out.