Occurrence and risk-related features of Bacillus cereus in fluid milk

This work assessed the prevalence and risk-related phenotypes of Bacillus cereus in milk products. Bacillus was the most dominant genus of 113 collected strains from 41 milk samples, and B. cereus (19.27%) was the most abundant species showing a high genetic diversity with seven random amplified polymorphic DNA patterns. Most B. cereus isolates were strong biofilm formers with good motility, extracellular polymeric substance-producing ability, high proteolytic and lipolytic activities. Antibiotic resistance analysis suggested the majority B. cereus strains were resistant to oxacillin (90.48%), tetracycline (95.24%), and penicillin G sodium (47.62%). Results revealed the genotypic diversity of B. cereus , and their potential risk in dairy industry.