Identification of Staphylococcus epidermidis on ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) collected in a food court in the city of Guarulhos, São Paulo

ABSTRACT: Out of the urbanization process, there was an increase in the spread of diseases carried by arthropods, and the most common are the ants. Their presence is related to its size, ease of locomotion and form of social life. Therefore, they can act as mechanical vectors of obligatory endosymbiont bacteria and pathogen ones as food contamination, and contamination of hospital environment. The purposes of this article was to isolate and identify contaminating bacteria of the genera Escherichia sp., Staphylococcus sp. and Salmonella sp. on ants workers circulating around a diner of high movement of people. Ant tracks were collected in the afternoon, sampled at four points to around the patio of the cafe. After the collection, the bacteria were identified, by growing in culture medium for enrichment and Tryptic Soy Broth - specific means. Of the four collected points around the diner, two of them showed growth of Staphylococcus epidermidis. This study identified the presence S. epidermidis on ants workers vectors in a cafeteria located in an area of great movement of persons indicating that the ants can be vectors of contamination in food trade.