SDCA Journal of Medical Technology

Abstract

Oysters are known as habitat for a large number of marine bacterial species like Vibrio. Vibrio species are commonly found and isolated from seawater and some of them may cause severe gastroenteritis to humans consuming oysters. The study aims to determine and identify Vibrio vulnificus bacteria present in a slipper oyster (Crassostrea iredalei) along seawater of Sineguelasan, Bacoor City, Cavite which maybe then the cause of gastroenteritis and wound septicemia when consume it raw and differentiate the significance of the seasons, wet and dry, related to the growth of bacteria. The researchers’ carried out standard protocol, methods, and procedures to isolate, identify, and determine the organism of interest. A total of sixty (60) oysters’ pooled meat (30 for dry, 30 for wet) were collected at the said barangay. This site was selected because it is considered to be the main port of marine bivalves such as oyster here in Bacoor, Cavite. The results of this study showed that there is a significant growth of V. vulnificus present in slipper oysters: results showed that wet season has the greater risk in affecting the growth of all Vibrio species (972 Mean MPN/g); and results revealed that high bacteria count exhibited by V. vulnificus present in oysters can infect humans either in dry or wet season (F8=0.91, p=.772). Statistical tools used were One-way ANOVA, followed by Duncan’s test and ttest. In this study, CFU/g value of each oyster sample were detected which varies from > x 105 CFU/g (X (Dry) = 6.7 x 105; X (Wet) = 5.7 x 105) and found out that these shown significant level of concentration in oyster. Thus, this study concludes that V. vulnificus is present in slipper oysters and had a potential risk to infect people.

Keywords: Vibrio vulnificus, oyster, Crassostrea iredalei, dry season, wet season, Sineguelasan, Bacoor, Cavite.