Isolation and Identification of Microorganisms associated with high-quality and low-quality cosmetics from different brands in Mecca region -Saudi Arabia

Cosmetic products contain several components that are ideal for microbial growth, they exposed to contamination by pathogenic bacteria and fungi, and this may cause health risks such as skin and eye infections. In this investigation, 50 samples were obtained from various shops in Mecca region, Saudi Arabia. Collected samples include high-quality and low-quality brands of makeup. Results show that most cosmetics are contaminated with microorganisms. Bacterial and fungal isolates were identified by morphological and microscopic techniques, and confirmed by molecular methods: (16s rRNA) for bacterial isolates and (18s rRNA) for fungal isolates associated with cosmetics. In low-quality cosmetics, frequency of microbial growth is higher and more diverse than high-quality cosmetics. It has been observed the most contaminated product was in lip gloss and it follows by the lipstick. The most predominant species of bacteria are Staphylococcus aureus (27 %), E. coli (27 %), which follows by Streptococcus pneumonia (18 %), Staphylococcus epidermis (17 %), Bacilli subtilis (12 %), and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (5 %). Aspergillus sp is the most predominant fungi (57 %), which is followed by Penicillium sp. (29 %) and Rhizopus sp. (14 %). In high quality brands, the frequency of microbial growth was the highest in mascara, lip-gloss. The most predominant species of bacteria is Staphylococcus aureus (41 %), which follows by Bacilli subtilis and Pseudomonas aeruginosa and E. coli (17 %). Streptococcus pneumonia is the less dominant (5 %). There is no growth on media of fungi. Due to the large number of cosmetics brands in Mecca region and for consumer safety, this study is prepared.