Background and Aim: Pigeon rearing has been gaining popularity for recent years. They are reared remarkably very close to the house of the owner. This activity, therefore, may pose potential threats for humans as well as other animals as pigeons may carry and spread different pathogens including drug-resistant bacteria. This study was conducted to explore the prevalence of Escherichia coli and Salmonella spp. as well as their antibiogram profile along with an association analysis. Materials and Methods: Forty swab samples were collected from 20 pigeons during the study. E. coli and Salmonella spp. were isolated and identified on various types of agars, including MacConkey, Eosin methylene blue, Brilliant green, and Salmonella-Shigella agar. Biochemical tests such as the carbohydrate fermentation test, the triple sugar iron agar slant reaction, the indole test, the methyl red test, the catalase test, as well as the Voges–Proskauer test were also performed. Besides, the presence of E. coli was further confirmed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Moreover, antimicrobial susceptibility testing of the isolates was performed against nine antibiotics from seven classes on the Mueller-Hinton agar based on the Kirby–Bauer disk diffusion method. Results: The overall prevalence of E. coli and Salmonella spp. was 52.5 and 27.5%, respectively. The prevalence of the pathogenic E. coli was 61.90%. The antibiogram profile of 21 E. coli as well as 11 Salmonella spp. revealed that all isolates, except one, were resistant to one to six antibiotics. Around 61.90%, 71.43%, 23.81%, 61.90%, 23.81%, 19.05%, and 52.38% of E. coli showed resistance against amoxicillin, ampicillin, azithromycin, erythromycin, nalidixic acid, gentamicin, and tetracycline, respectively. Furthermore, E. coli resistance was not observed in case of ciprofloxacin and levofloxacin. Similarly, around 36.36%, 27.27%, 27.27%, 45.45%, 81.82%, 100%, and 18.18% of the Salmonella spp. showed resistance against amoxicillin, ampicillin, azithromycin, erythromycin, nalidixic acid, tetracycline, and levofloxacin, respectively. However, all Salmonella spp. (100%) were found to show sensitivity against ciprofloxacin and gentamicin. Multidrug-resistant (MDR) E. coli (23.80%) and Salmonella spp. (54.54%) were also isolated. Furthermore, both positive (odds ratio [OR] >1) and negative (OR <1) drug resistance associations, with a higher frequency of positive associations, were found in E. coli. A significant positive association was observed between ampicillin and amoxicillin (OR: 81.67, 95% confidence interval: 2.73-2447.57, p=0.01). Conclusion: Pigeon carrying MDR E. coli and Salmonella spp. may contribute to the transmission and spread of these microorganisms. Therefore, strict hygienic measures should be taken during the farming of pigeons to decrease the potential transmission of E. coli and Salmonella spp. from pigeon to humans as well as other animals. So far, this is the first report of the PCR-based identification of pathogenic E. coli from pigeons in Bangladesh.

The present study was performed to investigate the prevalence of multidrug resistant (MDR) food-borne pathogens in raw chicken meat in Dhaka city, Bangladesh: an increasing food safety concern. A total of 100 meat samples (05 from each market) were collected from randomly selected 20 retail markets of Dhaka city using sterile polythene bags in a view to prevent extraneous contamination. The collected meat samples were then processed and inoculated onto nutrient broth and nutrient agar plates for isolation. The isolated organisms were identified based on staining, motility, cultural and biochemical properties according to standard laboratory methods. The isolated bacteria were also subjected to characterize their antibiotic sensitivity. In the present study, it was revealed that 100% of samples were contaminated by at least one species of bacteria belonging to 5 genera such as Staphylococcus, Escherichia coli, Salmonella, Enterobacter and Bacillus. Out of total 100 meat samples, 56% were contaminated with Escherichia coli whereas 42% were contaminated with Coagulase positive Staphylococcus and 36% were Salmonella species followed by 20%, 14% and 10% were contaminated with Enterobacter species, Coagulase negative Staphylococcus and Bacillus species respectively. A total of 174 bacteria were isolated and identified from raw chicken meat samples inspected of which 29.89% were Escherichia coli, 24.14% were Coagulase positive Staphylococcus, 20.69% were Salmonella species, 11.49% were Enterobacter species, 8.05% were Coagulase negative Staphylococcus and 5.75% were Bacillus species. The antimicrobial sensitivity tests showed that 96.15% of Escherichia coli (50 out of 52), 95.24% of Coagulase positive Staphylococcus (40 out of 42) and 86.11% of Salmonella (31 out of 36) isolates displayed multidrug resistance phenotypes (resistant to more than two antimicrobial agents). All most all the isolates of E. coli, coagulase positive Staphylococcus and Salmonella were more resistant to tetracycline, amoxicillin, ampicillin and streptomycin whereas less resistant to Ceftriaxone and Cefotaxime. The resistance patterns against azithromycin, ciprofloxacin, chloramphenicol, gentamycin, nalidixic acid and kanamycin were fluctuated from 25% to 71.43% among the isolates. This increasing development of multidrug resistance is alarming for the poultry industry and an increasing food safety concern for human. Asian Australas. J. Biosci. Biotechnol. 2018, 3 (1), 17-27