AMM, A. H., SUBBAIAH, T. V., and ABBASI, K. M. 1969. Berberine sulfate : antimicrobial activity, bioassay, and mode of action. Can. J. Microbial. 15: 1067-1076.Berberine sulfate was shown to possess antimicrobial activity against a wide variety of microorganisms including Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, fungi, and protozoa. The antibacterial activity against Vibrio cliolerae and Staphylococcris aureus was dependent on the inoculum size of the test organism and pH of the medium. A method of microbiological assay sensitive to 5-10 pg/ml of the drug was developed. The drug was shown to exert a more rapid antibacterial activity than chloramphenicol and tetracycline on V. cltolerae, the K values being 2.4 X 10;2 sec-1, 7.8 X 10-3 sec-1, and 5.2 X 10-3 sec-1 respectively. Berberine sulfate was shown to be bacterlocidal to V. cl2olerae and bacteriostatic to S. anreus, at concentrations of 35 and 50 pg/ml. In both these organisms concentrations of 35 and 50 pglml of the drug inhibited ribonucleic acid (RNA) and protein synthesis almost immediately after the addition of the drug. There was little effect on deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) synthesis at these concentrations.

Staphylococcus aureus is an important food pathogen that has the ability to form biofilms. This pathogen has been implicated in foodborne outbreaks associated with the consumption of meat and meat products. Since the role of meat products as reservoirs of antimicrobial resistant S. aureus and biofilm formers has not been studied, this research was conducted to assess the incidence, antimicrobial resistance, and presence of biofilm-forming genes in S. aureus bacteria from meat and meat products.

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