Isolation and molecular characterization of multidrug-resistant Escherichia coli from chicken meat

Abstract

Antibiotic-resistant Escherichia coli (E. coli) are common in retail poultry products. In this study, we aimed to isolate and characterize multidrug resistant (MDR) E. coli in raw chicken meat samples collected from poultry shops in Sylhet division, Bangladesh, as well as to determine correlation between resistance phenotype and genotype. A total of 600 chicken meat swabs (divided equally between broiler and layer farms, n = 300 each) were collected and the isolates identified as E. coli (n = 381) were selected. Disc diffusion antimicrobial susceptibility assay showed resistance of these isolates to ampicillin, erythromycin, tetracycline, streptomycin, trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, chloramphenicol, and gentamicin. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) identified several antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in our isolates. Among these ARGs, the prevalence of tetA (for tetracycline) was the highest (72.58%) in broiler chicken isolates, followed by sul1 (for sulfonamide; 44.16%), aadA1 (for streptomycin; 33.50%), ereA (for erythromycin; 27.41%), aac-3-IV (for gentamicin; 25.38%), and the two genes cmlA (24.87%) and catA1 (8.63%) for chloramphenicol. On the other hand, the respective prevalence in layer chicken isolates were 82.06%, 47.83%, 35.87%, 35.33%, 23.91%, 19.02%, and 5.43%. Furthermore, 49.23% of the isolates from broiler chicken were MDR, with the presence of multiple antibiotic resistance genes, including 3 (40.11%) and 4 (9.13%) genes. On the other hand, 51.09% of layer chicken E. coli isolates were MDR, with 3, 4 or 5 ARGs detected in 36.41%, 14.13%, and 0.54% of the isolates, respectively. We also found that 12.8% of broiler chicken E. coli isolates and 7.61% of layer chicken isolates carried genes coding for extended-spectrum SHV beta-lactamases. Lastly, we report the presence of the AmpC beta-lactamase producing gene (CITM) in 4.56% and 3.26% of broiler and layer chicken E. coli isolates, respectively. We found significant correlations between most of the antimicrobial resistant phenotypes and genotypes observed among the investigated E. coli isolates. Our findings highlight the need for the prudent use of antimicrobials in chickens to minimize the development of antibiotic-resistant bacterial strains.

Antimicrobial Resistance Profile and Extended Spectrum Beta-Lactamase Resistance Genes in Escherichia coli from Poultry Droppings in Nasarawa, Nigeria

“…Factors such as environmental conditions, geographical locations, and mixed infection of samples with other microbes have been suggested to affect prevalence of bacteria including E. coli [30] and this could be the causes of the differences in prevalence. *MAR isolates are those with resistance to at least two antibiotics [24] From this study, E. coli isolates were more resistant to streptomycin, sulphamethoxazole /trimethoprim, and ampicillin, which is similar to studies by [27], [31], and [32], but less resistant to imipenem, cefotaxime and ceftazidime. This finding is similar to a study by [33].The observed resistance of the E. coli from this study to commonly used antibiotics is not extraordinary as many studies worldwide have reported it [34,35] .…”

Antibiotic resistance and plasmid analysis of Enterobacteriaceae isolated from retail meat in Lagos Nigeria

“…Although one of our study limitation is the inability to provide an evidence of a link between the presence of plasmids and the antimicrobial resistance profiles observed. Antibiotic resistant genes encoding multiple resistance to antibiotic classes such as fluoroquinolones, aminoglycosides and beta-lactams borne on plasmids are capable of bacteria to bacteria transmission via horizontal gene transfer among bacterial communities [22,23] Interestingly, carriage of plasmids among the selected isolates was more frequent in bacteria isolated from chicken indicating chicken meat may be a reservoir of antimicrobial resistance as previously opined elsewhere [24].…”

Genome-Based Analysis of Klebsiella spp. Isolates from Animals and Food Products in Germany, 2013–2017

“…Antibiotic use in veterinary medicine is thought to increase the risk of antibiotic-resistant bacteria that can be transmitted to humans [ 36 ]. High prevalence rates of Escherichia coli with ESBL-mediated resistance to third-generation cephalosporins and MCR-1-mediated colistin resistance have been reported from livestock and food in recent years [ 37 , 38 , 39 ]. As expected, the resistance to ampicillin was frequent among the study collection due to the presence of intrinsic beta-lactamase genes in Klebsiella spp.…”