No abstract

This study evaluated antibiotic resistance and the related genes in total 47 Aeromonas veronii isolates from pet fish, eel (Anguilla japonica) and koi (Cyprinus carpio) in Korea. In comparison with the antibiotic susceptibilities of isolates from eel and koi, those of pet fish were more resistant to ceftiofur, aminoglycosides, tetracycline and nitrofurantoin. And isolates from pet fish showed high prevalences of class 1 integron, quinolones and tetracycline resistance determinants than those from eel and koi. Repetitive-element palindromic PCR (rep-PCR) showed larger diversities among A. veronii isolates. Collectively, pet fish may be a reservoir for multiple clones of A. veronii involved in antibiotic resistance. In this aspect, imported fish in the aquaculture trade should be steadily and continually screened for bacterial antibiotic resistance and related genes.

The prevalence of resistant genes against β-lactams in 119 Aeromonas strains was determined. A large number (99.2%) of the present fish strains were resistant to one or more β- lactams including ceftiofur, amoxicillin-clavulanic acid, ampicillin, piperacillin and cefpodoxime. Among antibiotic resistance phenotypes, the simultaneous resistance to all β-lactams occurred in 25.2% (n=30) of all strains, which consisted of 18 strains of A. dhakensis, 8 strains of A. caviae, 2 strains of A. hydrophila and only one strain of A. veronii. For exploring genetic background of the antibiotic resistances, multiple PCR assays were subjected to detect β-lactamase-encoding genes, blaTEM, blaOXA-B and blaCTX-M. In the results, the blaTEM-1 gene was harbored in all strains, whereas only 3 strains harbored blaOXA gene. In the case of blaCTX-M gene, the gene was detected in 21.0% (25 out of 119) of all strains, which countered with 80% (20 out of 25) of A. dhakensis, 8% (2 out of 25) of A. caviae and 12% (3 out of 25) of A. hydrophila. In addition, most of the blaCTX-M positive strains showed simultaneous resistance to all β-lactams (18 out of 30 strains). In sequence analysis for blaCTX-M genes detected, they were CTX-M group 1-encoding genes including blaCTX-M-33 from 3 eel strains of A. dhakensis. Therefore, A. dhakensis obtained from cultured fish could represent a reservoir for spreading genes encoding CTX-M group 1 enzymes and hence should be carefully monitored, especially for its potential risk to public health.

Objective: Raw potato starch (RPS) is resistant to digestion, escapes absorption, and is metabolized by intestinal microflora in the large intestine and acts as their energy source. In this study, we compared the effect of different concentrations of RPS on the intestinal bacterial community of weaned piglets.Methods: Male weaned piglets (25-days-old, 7.03±0.49 kg) were either fed a corn/soybean-based control diet (CON, n = 6) or two treatment diets supplemented with 5% RPS (RPS5, n = 4) or 10% RPS (RPS10, n = 4) for 20 days and their fecal samples were collected. The day 0 and 20 samples were analyzed using a 16S rRNA gene sequencing technology, followed by total genomic DNA extraction, library construction, and high-throughput sequencing. After statistical analysis, five phyla and 45 genera accounting for over 0.5% of the reads in any of the three groups were further analyzed. Furthermore, short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) in the day 20 fecal samples were analyzed using gas chromatography.Results: Significant changes were not observed in the bacterial composition at the phylum level even after 20 d post feeding (dpf); however, the abundance of <i>Intestinimonas</i> and <i>Barnesiella</i> decreased in both RPS treatment groups compared to the CON group. Consumption of 5% RPS increased the abundance of <i>Roseburia</i> (p<0.05) and decreased the abundance of <i>Clostridium</i> (p<0.01) and <i>Mediterraneibacter</i> (p< 0.05). In contrast, consumption of 10% RPS increased the abundance of <i>Olsenella</i> (p<0.05) and decreased the abundance of <i>Campylobacter</i> (p<0.05), <i>Kineothrix</i> (p<0.05), <i>Paraprevotella</i> (p<0.05), and <i>Vallitalea</i> (p<0.05). Additionally, acetate (p<0.01), butyrate (p<0.05), valerate (p = 0.01), and total SCFAs (p = 0.01) were upregulated in the RPS5 treatment groupConclusion: Feeding 5% RPS altered bacterial community composition and promoted gut health in weaned piglets. Thus, resistant starch as a feed additive may prevent diarrhea in piglets during weaning.