The Diversity and Ubiquity of Antibiotic Resistance Genes in Finfish Culture Ponds in Bangladesh

Abstract

In Bangladesh, fish provide over 60% of animal-source food with 56.2% of this coming from aquaculture produced predominantly in rural freshwater ponds. Increasing demand for fish products is driving intensification and resulting in higher disease prevalence, posing a risk to food security.Biosecurity is often absent in rural aquaculture practices in Bangladesh and antibiotics are commonly used to treat and prevent disease outbreaks. Antibiotics are often administered incorrectly -a key factor associated with the development of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). AMR can be disseminated rapidly within microbial ecosystems via mobile genetic elements, posing a risk for humans and animals infected with AMR pathogens as treatments with antibiotics become ineffective. Early AMR detection and understanding of the spread of antimicrobial resistant genes (ARGs) in rural