ABSTRACT

This review article aims to describe the main characteristics of Staphylocococus aureus and the relation of this microorganism with food-borne disease. S. aureus is the main species of this genus, and man and animals are the main reservoirs. These microorganisms can easily grow in food and produce thermo-resistant enterotoxins. Whole milk and dairy products, cream, cream-filled pies, potato salad, tuna, chicken, ham, meat and egg-based products have been incriminated in food-borne outbreaks involving Staphylococcus. The main symptoms are nausea, vomit, abdominal cramps and diarrhea. The incubation period varies from 2 to 4 hours. Twenty different enterotoxins are known and their production is influenced by temperature, pH, water activity, inoculum size, carbon and nitrogen availability, salt concentration and atmospheric conditions. The majority of food poisoning is caused by enterotoxins A and E. The enterotoxins are detectable in food containing S. aureus populations above 105 CFU/mL. The minimum dose of enterotoxin necessary to cause staphylococcal poisoning is 100 ng. To detect enterotoxins, methods like optimum sensitivity plate (OSP), microslide, reversed passive latex agglutination (RPLA) and ELISA can be applied. Although polimerase chain reaction (PCR) cannot differentiate viable and nonviable cells, it can be used to detect different kinds of enterotoxigenic staphylococci.

KEY WORDS
Enterotoxin; staphylococcal poisoning; food-borne disease