Search

We aimed to perform serotyping and the antimicrobial resistance profile of Salmonellaspp. and Listeria monocytogenesstrains isolated from raw meats imported illegally into Brazil along the borders of Argentina and Uruguay. Distinct isolates of Salmonellaspp. (n= 6) and L. monocytogenes(n= 25) obtained from 270 of these food products of earlier work were serotyped and tested for antimicrobial resistance by agar disk diffusion method. For strains that were considered phenotypically resistant, antimicrobial resistance genes were investigated: strA, strB, floR, tetA, tetB, blaZ, blaTEM, ermB, ermC,and ereBto Salmonellasp. and blaZand mecAto L. monocytogenes. All Salmonellaisolates were identified as SalmonellaInfantis; they were multidrug resistant and harbored the genes blaTEM(n= 6), strA(n= 1), strB(n= 1), floR(n= 1), ermB(n= 1), tetA(n= 3), and tetB(n= 3). L. monocytogenesisolates belonged to serovars 1/2a (n= 1), 1/2b (n= 14), 1/2c (n= 2), and 4b (n= 8), showed resistance only to penicillin G (n= 12), and did not show the blaZand mecAgenes. The results demonstrated that illegal foods that are commercialized in the Brazilian international border with Argentina and Uruguay may harbor foodborne pathogens, and some of them have multidrug resistance characteristics, such as Salmonella,emphasizing the need for greater control of international food transit in Brazil, especially in the region evaluated.