Prevalence of antimicrobial‐resistant Escherichia coli in endangered Okinawa rail (Gallirallus okinawae) inhabiting areas around a livestock farm

Abstract

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is an important issue for public, animal and environmental health. It has been suggested that livestock farms could be a source origin of AMR, and some wild animals that inhabit this area may play an important role in the spread of AMR in the natural environment. The prevalence of AMR in Escherichia coli was examined from Okinawa rails (Gallirallus okinawae), an endemic bird in Okinawa Main Island, Japan. Forty‐eight faecal samples of wild Okinawa rails were collected from around a livestock farm area (LA), near human settlements, in which a population of the Okinawa rail had newly inhabited for feeding, and a forest area (FA), their natural habitat. Among 16 E. coli‐positive faecal samples collected around LA, 11/16 (69%) showed antimicrobial resistance and five multiple drug resistance patterns were identified. However, among 15 E. coli‐positive faecal samples from FA, 3/15 (20%) showed antimicrobial resistance, and three multiple drug resistance patterns were identified. These results indicate that the endangered Okinawa rail may also play an important role as a potential vector for the spread of AMR in the natural environment. To maintain ecological health, it is imperative that in situ/ex situ conservation projects that include translocation plans for endangered species are aware of these data.

The under-investigated wild side ofEscherichia coli: genetic diversity, pathogenicity and antimicrobial resistance in wild animals

“…Rolland et al [42] compared the prevalence of AMR in groups of wild baboons (Papio cynocephalus) in Amboseli National Park, Kenya, finding low prevalence in those with little to no contact with humans, while 94.1% of samples from those close to a tourist lodge and its associated human waste carried multiple resistances. Livestock have been linked to a higher prevalence of AMR in proximate wild animals, including migratory birds and small mammals in several studies [37,38,[43][44][45][46][47]. AMR E. coli prevalence was very high (71.43%) in Egyptian vultures (Neophron percnopterus) wintering at a livestock carcass dump in India [40].…”

Antimicrobial susceptibility of <i>Escherichia coli</i> isolates obtained from wild mammals between 2013 and 2017 in Japan

“…On the other hand, in the isolates from mammals of animal facilities, high resistance rates were observed for AMP (23.6%), SXT (18.9%), TET (17.9%), and NAL (11.3%) ( Table 1). Along the Okinawa rail between farm and forest areas, the birds in the farm area were more frequent carriers of AMR E. coli (69%, 11/16) compared to those in the forest area (20%, 3/15) [10]. Usui et al suggested that flies in animal farms may carry and spread antimicrobial-resistant bacteria of reared animals [27].…”

Current status and future perspective of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria and resistance genes in animal-breeding environments

“…In our previous study, we isolated ARG-coding E. coli ( bla CTX-M1 -harboring E. coli ) from a rat captured on a farm; a similar ARB was isolated from egg-laying hens on the same farm [ 3 ]. A survey of Okinawa rail, a protected species, also reported a high rate of ARB isolated from individuals in the vicinity of a farm [ 33 ]. The bla CTX-M-14 plasmid was found to be transmitted between farm animals and weasels captured around animal facilities [ 84 ].…”