SStaphylococcus aureus is one of the most common organisms known to cause food poisoning and other diseases in humans and animals. Raw milk is a major source of transmission or this pathogen. This study aims to isolate, characterize, and detection antibiotic resistance genes for Staphylococcus aureus from cow milk samples collected from Wolkite, Ethiopia. A total of 385 cow milk samples were randomly collected.Each samples was serially diluted, cultured on blood agar, and then incubated at 37 oC for 24 hours to conduct a preliminary screening for possible Staphylococcus species isolates. A secondary screening was performed,including coagulase tests, mannitol salt fermentation, anti-biotic sensitivity tests, and molecular characterization to identify Staphylococcus aureus. The laboratory outcomes of the gathered samples were entered into Microsoft Excel 2010, and the species were identified by the advanced biological identification software tool (ABIS). Out of 30 possible species, 21 were identified as S. aureus. Most isolates were resistant to penicillin, multidrug-resistant, and sensitive to clindamycin. 80% of the isolates had the nuc gene. These isolates were predicted to be S. aureus subsp. aureus, S. cohnii, S. intermedius, and S. vitulinus, which currently all belong to S. aureus subsp. aureus according to advanced biological identification software tools. In conclusion, the recent isolates obtained from raw milk contained specific genes responsible for disease-causing, which have been reported and are present in the genomic DNA of S. aureus throughout its evolutionary history.

Keywords: Antibiotics, PCR, Raw milk, Staphylococcus