Detection of Staphylococcus aureusand other Coagulase Positive Staphylococci in Bovine Raw Milk in Khartoum State

The present study was undertaken to isolate and characterize coagulase positive staphylococci with emphasis on Staphylococcus aureus, an important food‐borne pathogen, from bulk raw bovine milk in Khartoum State. Milk samples were collected from sale points in Khartoum, Omdurman and Khartoum North during January and February 2010. A total of 75 samples were collected; 25 samples from Khartoum (15 from Alshagara and 10 from Yathrib), 25samples from Omdurman (all from Waddrow sale point) and 25 samples from Khartoum North (15 from Helat Kuku and 10 from a sale point near the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Khartoum). All samples were transported to the laboratory in an ice box and were cultured on mannitol salt agar on the same day. A total of 163 coagulase positive staphylococcus isolates was obtained from all samples. Of these S. aureus constituted 32.6 % of the isolates: 39.6% from Khartoum, 47.2% from Omdurman and 13.2% from Khartoum North. Other coagulase positive staphylococcus constituted 67.4% of the isolates. It appears that raw bovine milk contains a high percentage of pathogenic S. aureus which makes it inherently dangerous and should not be consumed before pasteurization or boiling