scholarly journals DNA Sequence and Comparative Genomics of pAPEC-O2-R, an Avian Pathogenic Escherichia coli Transmissible R Plasmid

2005 ◽  
Vol 49 (11) ◽  
pp. 4681-4688 ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy J. Johnson ◽  
Kylie E. Siek ◽  
Sara J. Johnson ◽  
Lisa K. Nolan

ABSTRACT In this study, a 101-kb IncF plasmid from an avian pathogenic Escherichia coli (APEC) strain (APEC O2) was sequenced and analyzed, providing the first completed APEC plasmid sequence. This plasmid, pAPEC-O2-R, has functional transfer and antimicrobial resistance-encoding regions. The resistance-encoding region encodes resistance to eight groups of antimicrobial agents, including silver and other heavy metals, quaternary ammonium compounds, tetracycline, sulfonamides, aminoglycosides, trimethoprim, and beta-lactam antimicrobial agents. This region of the plasmid is unique among previously described IncF plasmids in that it possesses a class 1 integron that harbors three gene cassettes and a heavy metal resistance operon. This region spans 33 kb and is flanked by the RepFII plasmid replicon and an assortment of plasmid maintenance genes. pAPEC-O2-R also contains a 32-kb transfer region that is nearly identical to that found in the E. coli F plasmid, rendering it transferable by conjugation to plasmid-less strains of bacteria, including an APEC strain, a fecal E. coli strain from an apparently healthy bird, a Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium strain, and a uropathogenic E. coli strain from humans. Differences in the G+C contents of individual open reading frames suggest that various regions of pAPEC-O2-R had dissimilar origins. The presence of pAPEC-O2-R-like plasmids that encode resistance to multiple antimicrobial agents and that are readily transmissible from APEC to other bacteria suggests the possibility that such plasmids may serve as a reservoir of resistance genes for other bacteria of animal and human health significance.

2020 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 81
Author(s):  
Raouia Ben Rhouma ◽  
Ahlem Jouini ◽  
Amira Klibi ◽  
Safa Hamrouni ◽  
Aziza Boubaker ◽  
...  

The purpose of this study was to identify <em>Escherichia coli</em> isolates in diarrhoeic and healthy rabbits in Tunisia and characterise their virulence and antibiotic resistance genes. In the 2014-2015 period, 60 faecal samples from diarrhoeic and healthy rabbits were collected from different breeding farms in Tunisia. Susceptibility to 14 antimicrobial agents was tested by disc diffusion method and the mechanisms of gene resistance were evaluated using polymerase chain reaction and sequencing methods. Forty <em>E. coli</em> isolates were recovered in selective media. High frequency of resistance to tetracycline (95%) was detected, followed by different levels of resistance to sulphonamide (72.5%), streptomycin (62.5%), trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (60%), nalidixic acid (32.5%), ampicillin (37.5%) and ticarcillin (35%). <em>E. coli</em> strains were susceptible to cefotaxime, ceftazidime and imipenem. Different variants of bla<sub>TEM</sub>, <em>tet</em>, <em>sul</em> genes were detected in most of the strains resistant to ampicillin, tetracycline and sulphonamide, respectively. The presence of class 1 integron was studied in 29 sulphonamide-resistant <em>E. coli</em> strains from which 15 harboured class 1 integron with four different arrangements of gene cassettes, <em>dfrA17</em>+<em>aadA5</em> (n=9), <em>dfrA1</em> + <em>aadA1</em> (n=4), <em>dfrA12</em> + <em>addA2</em> (n=1), <em>dfrA12</em>+<em>orf</em>+<em>addA2</em> (n=1). The <em>qnrB</em> gene was detected in six strains out of 13 quinolone-resistant <em>E. coli</em> strains. Seventeen <em>E. coli</em> isolates from diarrhoeic rabbits harboured the enteropathogenic eae genes associated with different virulence genes tested (<em>fimA</em>, <em>cnf1</em>, <em>aer</em>), and affiliated to B2 (n=8) and D (n=9) phylogroups. Isolated <em>E. coli</em> strains from healthy rabbit were harbouring <em>fim A</em> and/or <em>cnf1</em> genes and affiliated to A and B1 phylogroups. This study showed that <em>E. coli</em> strains from the intestinal tract of rabbits are resistant to the widely prescribed antibiotics in medicine. Therefore, they constitute a reservoir of antimicrobial-resistant genes, which may play a significant role in the spread of antimicrobial resistance. In addition, the eae virulence gene seemed to be implicated in diarrhoea in breeder rabbits in Tunisia.


2019 ◽  
Vol 64 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Qingyang Li ◽  
Peng Zhao ◽  
Lili Li ◽  
Haifeng Zhao ◽  
Lei Shi ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Microbial multidrug resistance (MDR) poses a huge threat to human health. Bacterial acquisition of MDR relies primarily on class 1 integron-involved horizontal gene transfer (HGT) of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs). To date, no strategies other than the use of antibiotics can efficiently cope with MDR. Here, we report that an engineered CRISPR interference (CRISPRi) system can markedly reduce MDR by blocking a class 1 integron in Escherichia coli. Using CRISPRi to block plasmid R388 class 1 integron, E. coli recombinants showed halted growth upon exposure to relevant antibiotics. A microplate alamarBlue assay showed that both subgenomic RNAs (sgRNAs) R3 and R6 led to 8- and 32-fold decreases in half-maximal inhibitory concentrations (IC50) for trimethoprim and sulfamethoxazole, respectively. Reverse transcription and quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) revealed that the strain employing sgRNA R6 exhibited 97% and 84% decreases in the transcriptional levels of the dfrB2 cassette and sul1, two typical ARGs, respectively. RT-qPCR analysis also demonstrated that the strain recruiting sgRNA R3 showed a 96% decrease in the transcriptional level of intI1, and a conjugation assay revealed a 1,000-fold decrease in HGT rates of ARGs. Overall, the sgRNA R3 targeting the 31 bp downstream of the Pc promoter on the intI1 nontemplate strand outperformed other sgRNAs in reducing integron activity. Furthermore, this CRISPRi system is reversible, genetically stable, and titratable by varying the concentration of the inducer. To our knowledge, this is the first report on exploiting a CRISPRi system to reduce the class 1 integron in E. coli. This study provides valuable insights for future development of CRISPRi-based antimicrobial agents and cellular therapy to suppress MDR.


2007 ◽  
Vol 73 (20) ◽  
pp. 6566-6576 ◽  
Author(s):  
Moussa S. Diarra ◽  
Fred G. Silversides ◽  
Fatoumata Diarrassouba ◽  
Jane Pritchard ◽  
Luke Masson ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT The effects of feed supplementation with the approved antimicrobial agents bambermycin, penicillin, salinomycin, and bacitracin or a combination of salinomycin plus bacitracin were evaluated for the incidence and distribution of antibiotic resistance in 197 commensal Escherichia coli isolates from broiler chickens over 35 days. All isolates showed some degree of multiple antibiotic resistance. Resistance to tetracycline (68.5%), amoxicillin (61.4%), ceftiofur (51.3%), spectinomycin (47.2%), and sulfonamides (42%) was most frequent. The levels of resistance to streptomycin, chloramphenicol, and gentamicin were 33.5, 35.5, and 25.3%, respectively. The overall resistance levels decreased from day 7 to day 35 (P < 0.001). Comparing treatments, the levels of resistance to ceftiofur, spectinomycin, and gentamicin (except for resistance to bacitracin treatment) were significantly higher in isolates from chickens receiving feed supplemented with salinomycin than from the other feeds (P < 0.001). Using a DNA microarray analysis capable of detecting commonly found antimicrobial resistance genes, we characterized 104 tetracycline-resistant E. coli isolates from 7- to 28-day-old chickens fed different growth promoters. Results showed a decrease in the incidence of isolates harboring tet(B), bla TEM, sulI, and aadA and class 1 integron from days 7 to 35 (P < 0.01). Of the 84 tetracycline-ceftiofur-resistant E. coli isolates, 76 (90.5%) were positive for bla CMY-2. The proportions of isolates positive for sulI, aadA, and integron class 1 were significantly higher in salinomycin-treated chickens than in the control or other treatment groups (P < 0.05). These data demonstrate that multiantibiotic-resistant E. coli isolates can be found in broiler chickens regardless of the antimicrobial growth promoters used. However, the phenotype and the distribution of resistance determinants in E. coli can be modulated by feed supplementation with some of the antimicrobial agents used in broiler chicken production.


2018 ◽  
Vol 16 (5) ◽  
pp. 319-327
Author(s):  
Atchariya YOSBOONRUANG ◽  
Anong KIDDEE ◽  
Chatsuda BOONDUANG ◽  
Phannarai PIBALPAKDEE

Escherichia coli is a serious cause of a variety of hospital-acquired infections and commonly contributes to the environment by house flies. Integrons, particularly class 1 integrons, are the genetic elements that play an important role in the horizontal transfer of antimicrobial resistance mechanism. This mechanism is commonly found in Enterobacteriaceae, especially E. coli. In this study, we aim to investigate the occurrence and antimicrobial resistance patterns of E. coli isolated from the house flies in Phayao hospital and to determine the gene expression of class 1 integrons in those isolates of E. coli. Totally, 70 isolates of E. coli were isolated from 60 house flies collected from the hospital. Fifty-seven of the isolates (81.43 %) were multidrug resistance (MDR) and highly resistant to b-lactams, tetracyclines, and sulfonamides. Of 57 isolates of MDR-E. coli, 20 isolates (35 %) were found to carry class 1 integron genes. Fifteen patterns of antimicrobial resistance occurred in the isolates of integron-positive E. coli. Most integron-positive E. coli isolates were resistant to 7 antimicrobials. Two isolates of these bacteria (10 %) were able to resist 13 out of 14 tested antimicrobials. Using PCR and sequencing analysis, an investigation showed that dfrA17-aadA5, dfrA12-aadA2 gene cassette was the most prevalent cassette (n = 10; 50 %) among the integron-positive E. coli isolates. Our results indicated that the presences of multidrug resistance and class 1 integrons were common in E. coli isolated from the houseflies in hospital. Therefore, screening for integron-positive E. coli from the hospital environment might be necessary for prevention of nosocomial infections.


2015 ◽  
Vol 78 (8) ◽  
pp. 1442-1450 ◽  
Author(s):  
KANJANA CHANGKAEW ◽  
APIRADEE INTARAPUK ◽  
FUANGFA UTRARACHKIJ ◽  
CHIE NAKAJIMA ◽  
ORASA SUTHIENKUL ◽  
...  

Administration of antimicrobials to food-producing animals increases the risk of higher antimicrobial resistance in the normal intestinal flora of these animals. The present cross-sectional study was conducted to investigate antimicrobial susceptibility and extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)–producing strains and to characterize class 1 integrons in Escherichia coli in healthy swine in Thailand. All 122 of the tested isolates had drug-resistant phenotypes. High resistance was found to ampicillin (98.4% of isolates), chloramphenicol (95.9%), gentamicin (78.7%), streptomycin (77.9%), tetracycline (74.6%), and cefotaxime (72.1%). Fifty-four (44.3%) of the E. coli isolates were confirmed as ESBL-producing strains. Among them, blaCTX-M (45 isolates) and blaTEM (41 isolates) were detected. Of the blaCTX-M-positive E. coli isolates, 37 carried the blaCTX-M-1 cluster, 12 carried the blaCTX-M-9 cluster, and 5 carried both clusters. Sequence analysis revealed blaTEM-1, blaTEM-135, and blaTEM-175 in 38, 2, and 1 isolate, respectively. Eighty-seven (71%) of the 122isolates carried class 1 integrons, and eight distinct drug-resistance gene cassettes with seven different integron profiles were identified in 43 of these isolates. Gene cassettes were associated with resistance to aminoglycosides (aadA1, aadA2, aadA22, or aadA23), trimethoprim (dfrA5, dfrA12, or dfrA17), and lincosamide (linF). Genes encoding β-lactamases were not found in class 1 integrons. This study is the first to report ESBL-producing E. coli with a class 1 integron carrying the linF gene cassette in swine in Thailand. Our findings confirm that swine can be a reservoir of ESBL-producing E. coli harboring class 1 integrons, which may become a potential health risk if these integrons are transmitted to humans. Intensive analyses of animal, human, and environmental isolates are needed to control the spread of ESBL-producing E. coli strains.


2008 ◽  
Vol 71 (8) ◽  
pp. 1679-1684 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. L. KHAITSA ◽  
J. OLOYA ◽  
D. DOETKOTT ◽  
R. KEGODE

The objective of this study was to quantify the role of class 1 integrons in antimicrobial resistance in Escherichia coli isolated from turkey meat products purchased from retail outlets in the Midwestern United States. Of 242 E. coli isolates, 41.3% (102 of 242) tested positive for class 1 integrons. A significant association was shown between presence of class 1 integrons in E. coli isolates and the resistance to tetracycline, ampicillin, streptomycin, gentamicin, sulfisoxazole, and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole. Attributable risk analysis revealed that for every 100 E. coli isolates carrying class 1 integrons, resistance was demonstrated for ampicillin (22%), gentamycin (48%), streptomycin (29%), sulfisoxazole (40%), trimethoprimsulfamethoxazole (7%), and tetracycline (26%). Non–integron-related antimicrobial resistance was demonstrated for ampicillin (65%), gentamycin (16.9%), streptomycin (42.1%), sulfisoxazole (35.8%), and tetracycline (49.7%). Population-attributable fraction analysis showed that class 1 integrons accounted for the following resistances: gentamycin, 71% (50 of 71), amoxicillin–clavulanic acid, 19.6% (6 of 33), nalidixic acid, 34% (7 of 21), streptomycin, 28% (30 of 107), sulfisoxazole, 38% (40 of 106), and tetracycline, 14%, (26 of 185). In conclusion, although class 1 integrons have been implicated in resistance to antimicrobial agents, other non–integron resistance mechanisms seem to play an important part.


2009 ◽  
Vol 72 (5) ◽  
pp. 1082-1088 ◽  
Author(s):  
AHLEM JOUINI ◽  
KARIM BEN SLAMA ◽  
YOLANDA SÁENZ ◽  
NAOUEL KLIBI ◽  
DANIELA COSTA ◽  
...  

Phenotypic and genotypic characterization of antimicrobial resistance was conducted for 98 Escherichia coli isolates recovered from 40 food samples of animal origin (poultry, sheep, beef, fish, and others) obtained in supermarkets and local butcheries in Tunis during 2004 and 2005. Susceptibility to 15 antimicrobial agents was tested by disk diffusion and agar dilution methods, the mechanisms of resistance were evaluated using PCR and sequencing methods, and the clonal relationship among isolates was evaluated using pulsed-field gel electrophoresis. High resistance was detected to tetracycline, sulphonamides, nalidixic acid, ampicillin, streptomycin, and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (29 to 43% of isolates), but all isolates were susceptible to cefotaxime, ceftazidime, cefoxitin, azthreonam, and amikacin. One-third of the isolates had multiresistant phenotypes (resistance to at least five different families of antimicrobial agents). Different variants of blaTEM, tet, sul, dfrA, aadA, and aac(3) genes were detected in most of the strains resistant to ampicillin, tetracycline, sulphonamide, trimethoprim, streptomycin, and gentamicin, respectively. The presence of class 1 and class 2 integrons was studied in 15 sulphonamide-resistant unrelated E. coli strains, and 14 of these strains harbored class 1 integrons with five different arrangements of gene cassettes, and a class 2 integron with the dfrA1 + sat + aadA1 arrangement was found in one strain. This study revealed the high diversity of antimicrobial resistance genes, some of them included in integrons, in E. coli isolates of food origin.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wei Zhou ◽  
Enbao Zhang ◽  
Jinzhi Zhou ◽  
Ze He ◽  
Yuqiao Zhou ◽  
...  

This research aimed to investigate the presence and transferability of the extended-spectrum β-lactamase resistance genes to identify the genetic context of multi-drug resistant (MDR) loci in two Escherichia coli plasmids from livestock and poultry breeding environment. MICs were determined by broth microdilution. A total of 137 E. coli resistant to extended-spectrum β-lactam antibiotics were screened for the presence of the ESBL genes by PCR. Only two E. coli out of 206 strains produced carbapenemases, including strain 11011 that produced enzyme A, and strain 417957 that produced enzyme B. The genes were blaKPC and blaNDM, respectively. The plasmids containing blaCTX–M were conjugatable, and the plasmids containing carbapenem resistance gene were not conjugatable. Six extended-spectrum β-lactamase resistance genes were detected in this research, including blaTEM, blaCTX–M, blaSHV, blaOAX–1, blaKPC, and blaNDM, and the detection rates were 94.89% (130/137), 92.7% (127/137), 24.81% (34/137), 20.43% (28/137), 0.72% (1/137), and 0.72% (1/137), respectively. Two conjugative lncFII multi-resistance plasmids carrying blaCTX–M, p11011-fosA and p417957-CTXM, were sequenced and analyzed. Both conjugative plasmids were larger than 100 kb and contained three accessory modules, including MDR region. The MDR region of the two plasmids contained many antibiotic resistance genes, including blaCTX–M, mph (A), dfrA17, aadA5, sul1, etc. After transfer, both the transconjugants displayed elevated MICs of the respective antimicrobial agents. A large number of resistance genes clusters in specific regions may contribute to the MDR profile of the strains. The presence of mobile genetic elements at the boundaries can possibly facilitate transfer among Enterobacteriaceae through inter-replicon gene transfer. Our study provides beta-lactam resistance profile of bacteria, reveals the prevalence of β-lactamase resistance genes in livestock and poultry breeding environment in Zhejiang Province, and enriches the research on IncFII plasmids containing blaCTX–M.


2012 ◽  
Vol 78 (15) ◽  
pp. 5444-5447 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Ponce-Rivas ◽  
María-Enriqueta Muñoz-Márquez ◽  
Ashraf A. Khan

ABSTRACTThis study describes the prevalence of arrays of class 1 integron cassettes and Qnr determinants (A, B, and S) in 19 fluoroquinolone-resistantEscherichia coliisolates from chicken litter.qnrSandqnrAwere the predominant genes in these fluoroquinolone-resistant isolates, and an uncommon array ofaacA4-catB3-dfrA1gene cassettes from a class1 integron was found. Additionally,aadA1anddfrA1gene cassettes, encoding resistance to streptomycin and trimethoprim, constituted the most common genes identified and was located on megaplasmids as well on the chromosome. Antibiotic resistance, pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE), and plasmid data suggest a genetically diverse origin of poultryE. coliisolates.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kingsley Ehi Ebomah ◽  
Anthony Ifeanyi Okoh

Abstract Background Carbapenems belong to beta-lactam class of antibiotics usually considered as the last line of defense because they can be effective against severe infections caused by prevalent multidrug-resistant (MDR) pathogens. However, carbapenems can be deactivated by bacteria that produce carbapenemase (beta-lactamase). This study was conducted to screen for carbapenem-resistance genes (CRGs) harbored by pathogenic strains of Escherichia coli recovered from different environmental samples. We also assessed the genetic relatedness among selected E. coli pathotypes using enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus-polymerase chain reaction (ERIC-PCR).Method: Molecular identification and characterization of the presumptive isolates were performed using PCR and isolates that exhibited antimicrobial resistance (AMR) phenotypically were further screened for some relevant CRGs (blaNDM−1, blaKPC and blaOXA−48−like). Furthermore, ERIC-PCR was used to determine the similarity and diversity of 31 E. coli strains which were randomly selected from the different sources analyzed in this study.Result Our findings revealed a total of 238 presumptive E. coli isolates, out of which 192 were confirmed positive for uidA gene. Further screening revealed 77 (40%) isolates belong to six key E. coli pathotypes and 70 of them exhibited phenotypic AMR. Additionally, twenty-nine (41%) of the 70 MDR pathogenic E. coli strains harbored CRGs; with 24 strains harboring blaNDM−1, 8 harboring blaKPC and 2 harboring blaOXA−48−like genes.Conclusion Findings also suggest that the selected E. coli pathotypes belonged to different genomic clusters, while the cluster analysis showed a possible genetic diversity among aquatic and farm isolates. Proper treatment of final effluents before discharge as well as the development of more effective strategies to control and manage the use of antimicrobial agents were strongly recommended.


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