Assessment of the Contamination of Some Foodstuffs by Escherichia coli O157 in Benin, West Africa

Hindawi Publishing Corporation International Journal of Microbiology Volume 2014, Article ID 417848, 8 pages http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2014/417848 Research Article Assessment of the Contamination of Some Foodstuffs by Escherichia coli O157 in Benin, West Africa Honoré Sourou Bankole,1,2 Victorien Tamègnon Dougnon,2,3 Roch Christian Johnson,3 T. J. Dougnon,2 Boniface Yehouenou,4 Sylvain Kougblenou,1 Maxime Agonsa,1 Magloire Legonou,1 Thomas Dadie,5 and Lamine Baba-Moussa6 1 Department of Water and Food Hygiene, Ex-National Laboratory of Public Health, Ministry of Health, 01 P.O. Box, 418 Cotonou, Benin 2 Polytechnic School of Abomey-Calavi, Research Laboratory in Applied Biology, University of Abomey-Calavi, 01 P.O. Box, 2009 Cotonou, Benin 3 Interfaculty Center of Training and Research in Environment for the Sustainable Development, Laboratory of Hygiene, Sanitation, Toxicology and Environmental Health, Laboratory of Toxicology and Environmental Health, University of Abomey-Calavi, 01 P.O. Box, 1463 Cotonou, Benin 4 Polytechnic School of Abomey-Calavi, Research and Training Laboratory in Applied Chemistry, University of Abomey-Calavi, 01 P.O. Box, 2009 Cotonou, Benin 5 Training and Research Unit in Food Sciences and Technology, University of Nangui Abrogoua, 02 P.O. Box, Autoroute d’Abobo, 801 Abidjan, Cote D’Ivoire 6 Laboratory of Biology and Molecular Typing in Microbiology, Faculty of Sciences and Techniques, University of Abomey-Calavi, 05 P.O. Box, 1604 Cotonou, Benin Correspondence should be addressed to Victorien Tamègnon Dougnon; Received 6 September 2014; Revised 19 October 2014; Accepted 20 October 2014; Published 24 November 2014 Academic Editor: Todd R. Callaway Copyright © 2014 Honoré Sourou Bankole et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Escherichia coli O157 is a pathogenic bacterium causing haemorrhagic colitis. It represents a serious public health problem in Northern America and Europe, which can plague Africa. Most cases of mentioned poisoning were related to contaminated meat products and vegetables. The present work aimed to estimate the prevalence of E. coli O157 in meat and vegetables in Benin. For this purpose, 6 lots of faeces samples from pigs and 8 from cattle were collected at the farms on the outskirts of Cotonou. Similarly, 20 samples of carcasses, 20 samples of intestines and stomach, and 20 surfaces samples of slaughtering equipment were taken. Vegetables and environment materials in gardens have also been sampled for 84 samples. Bacteriological analyses revealed a percentage of contamination of 50% for pig faeces and 25% for cattle ones. All the meats from stalling parks have been contaminated by this bacterium. For vegetables, 14.6% of samples were contaminated by E. coli O157. The presence of this pathovar in animal breeding and slaughtering environment and in the gardens shows that Benin is not aware of the risks of foodborne illness associated with the consumption of contaminated products. Therefore, it urges including that germ in a systematic search during safety control of food products in Benin. 1. Introduction Meat is considered as a privileged food because of its nutritive value. It is rich in proteins [1] and carries some essential amino acids. Meat is an important source of iron, vitamin B12, and lipids. Its nature makes it an indispensable food for a well-balanced food intake. Meat delivered for consumption comes from various animals like cattle, pigs, and goats [2]. Being convinced about the indispensable role that meat plays in food and nutritional security of the populations, Benin has granted a major place to the development of livestock keeping in its strategic plan of promotion of the agricultural sector implemented since 2008. However, in the future, consequences for Benin should be noted concerning food 2 security in front of the emergence of new pathogens such as E. coli, which is a Shiga toxin producer. In fact, since 1982, many cases of human infections following the consumption of food contaminated by the Shiga toxin of E. coli have been reported all over the world [3]. A record related to the association of meat products to the episodes of poisoning by E. coli O157 in the period of 1985 to 2001 showed, in the United States, 24 cases from 1985 to 1986, 73 cases from 1990 to 1992, 200 cases from 1997 to 1998, and 326 cases between 1999 and 2000. Canada, for its part, recorded 110 cases in 1990, United Kingdom 85 cases between 1994 and 1996, and France 105 cases from 2000 to 2001 [4]. Apart from the contamination related to the consumption of meat products, vegetables remained also problematic. They constitute excellent contributions of enrichment and diversification of human food. Vegetables are primary sources of minerals, vitamins, and other compounds that intervene in human nutritional health [5]. In Benin, market gardeners cultivate many vegetables. They require a high amount of nutrients. These nutrients can easily be used as inorganic fertilizers. However, there are numerous consequences related to their use. Among these, washing, erosion of soils, and pollution of the underground water can be mentioned [6]. This is the reason for which organic manures application is increasingly promoted. It provides nutritive elements to the plants and improves the soil structure [6, 7]. It has been reported that the application of organic manure, compared to the inorganic fertilizers, increases significantly the yield, for example, in the production of eggplants [6, 7]. Among these organic manures are the droppings of chicken, which are very prized in urban agriculture in Cotonou [8]. These faecal manures come back inexpensive to the market gardeners. In soil, they nourish the plant in major nutritive elements like nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. Nitrogen enhances the vegetation, accelerates the growth of the plant, and gives a good green coloration to the leaves. The phosphorus ions increase the development of roots and bulbs. They exercise an accelerating action on the maturity of the fruits, vegetables, and cereals. Potash makes the plant vigorous and allows it to resist the drought and diseases. The droppings are also a source of microelements such as magnesium, zinc, copper, sulphur, and boron. Apart from the nutritive elements, the decomposition of the droppings of chicken produces humus, which is highly useful for the consistency of soil that becomes soft and permeable to air and the roots [9]. Despite the advantages of the use of chicken droppings in urban agriculture, potential risks of contamination of the vegetables produced, related to the presence of pathogenic bacteria in the droppings, remain a preoccupation [10, 11]. The market gardeners, often hurried to produce and sell their products, do not master the saniti (...truncated)