Prevalence of Vibrio parahaemolyticus in Penaeus Monodon (Fabricius, 1798) from the Douala Coastal Waters of Cameroon: Implication for Food Safety
Rhoda Nsen Bughe1 4 5, Pius Mbu Oben2, Benedicta O. Oben1, Akindeh Mbuh Nji1 6, Innocent Mbulli Ali6 7, Palmer Masumbe Netongo2 6, Wilfred Fon Mbacham* 3 5 6
Citation :Rhoda Nsen Bughe , Pius Mbu Oben, et. al, Prevalence of Vibrio parahaemolyticus in Penaeus Monodon (Fabricius, 1798) from the Douala Coastal Waters of Cameroon: Implication for Food Safety International Journal of Research Studies in Biosciences 2016,4(6) : 10-20.
Seafood constitutes an important food component and a cheap source of protein in developing
countries. Shrimps are prone to bacterial contamination in their environment and have been frequently
implicated in Vibrio parahaemolyticus infection.
Of the 121 Penaeus monodon collected from coastal beaches in Douala, 79(65.3%) were contaminated with
Vibrio spp. Presumed Vibrio sp. were identified by standard biochemical tests and further confirmed by API
20E kit.
A total of 150 Vibrio parahaemolyticus were isolated from Penaeus monodon and predominated in the
gills40%, 22.7% from hepatopancrea and 37.3% from intestines. V. parahaemolyticus was high in Shrimps from
Essengue beach (56%). V. parahaemolyticus occurrence was high in the dry season in Youpwe beach (32.6%)
while low in Essengue beach (22%). Meanwhile in the wet season Essengue beach recorded high prevalence
(32.7%) of V. parahaemolyticus as opposed to 20.7% in Youpwe beach. A high prevalence of haemolytic activity
(80.4%) was observed when V. parahaemolyticus was grown on 5% human blood agar. Complete haemolysis
predominated with a prevalence of 47.8% while partial haemolysis (32.6%) and non- haemolysis (19.6%). This
study has shown that the Vibrio parahaemolyticus isolated from Penaeus monodon of the Douala coastal waters
is pathogenic and can pose a health risk when consumed without proper cooking.