Researchers find hospital bacteria in fish

KOCHI: Microbiologists, who have conducted research on fish and backwaters of Kochi, reported the presence of methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), a bacteria found in hospitals .

Scientists at the microbiology fermentation and biotechnology division of ICAR-Central Institute of Fisheries Technology (CIFT) working on MRSA for the last couple of years said presence of the bacteria was seen in fish available in markets and also in the backwaters.

TOI had reported that fishermen were getting medical waste in their net, which ends up wounding them and also causing damage to fishing nets. Work on MRSA —initiated one-and-a-half years ago by K V Lalitha, V Murugadas and Toms C Joseph — has screened more than 150 samples of fish, shellfish and water from different fish markets in Ernakulam .

MRSA is an antibiotic-resistant bacteria which infects patients in the ICU and in the hospital environment. “The only way it could get into water is when the waste is dumped into waters. It will survive in water and also get into fish. If a person with an injury gets infected from the waters or eats the fish that contains these bacteria, it could be dangerous to human health,” said K V Lalitha, head of microbiology, fermentation and biotechnology division.