Poster Presentation The Prato Conference on the Pathogenesis of Bacterial Infections of Animals 2016

Emergence of a blaSHV-12 and qnrB coproducing Escherichia coli strain isolated from poultry in Tiaret, northwestern Algeria (#51)

Qada BENAMEUR 1 2 , Hassiba Tali-Maamar 3 , Farida Assaous 3 , Badia Guettou 3 , Naϊma Tahrat 3 , Nadjet Aggoune 4 , Meriem-Hind BenMahdi 1 , Kheira Rahal 3
  1. Laboratoire de Recherche "Santé et Production Animale", Ecole Nationale Supérieure Vétérinaire d'El-Harrach, Algiers, Algeria
  2. Département des Sciences Infirmières, Faculté des Sciences de la Nature et de la Vie, Université Abd Elhamid Ibn Badiss , Mostaganem, Algeria
  3. Laboratoire de bactériologie médicale, Institut Pasteur d’Algérie, Algiers, Algeria
  4. Laboratoire de Microbiologie, Hôpital central de l’armé, Algiers, Algeria

Background: Plasmid-borne quinolone resistance genes (qnr) have been a growing concern in human and veterinary medicine as they can often be found in combination with extended-spectrum beta-lactamases. The aim of this study was to investigate the occurrence of qnr determinants in ESBL-positive E. coli strain isolated from poultry in Algeria.

Methods: One E. coli isolate, showing reduced susceptibility to cefotaxime, recovered from fecal sample of parent broiler flock were investigated. Antimicrobial susceptibility was determined using Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute methodology. The presence of a bla gene (blaCTX-M genotype groups 1, 2, 8 and 9, blaTEM and blaSHV), and then qnr gene (qnrA, qnrB, qnrS) was established by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and sequencing. Escherichia coli was further characterized using molecular typing by multilocus sequence typing (MLST).

Results: In this study we describe, for the first time, the identification of an isolate of Escherichia coli from poultry which carried qnrB in combination with a blaSHV-12 gene. The E. coli was resistant to the following non-β-lactam antimicrobial agents: nalidixic acid, ciprofloxacin, levofloxacin, tetracycline, sulphonamides, trimethoprim, and trimethoprim-sulphamethoxazole. MLST indicated the presence of a sequence type ST132.

Conclusions: This study demonstrated that parent broiler feces may be a reservoir of E. coli co-harboring blaSHV-12 and qnrB genes. This may pose an animal and a public health risk, which requires future evaluation and control.