Antimicrobial resistance genes and genetic characteristics of multidrug-resistant Escherichia coli in a veterinary hospital in Taiwan

Introduction. Antimicrobial resistance associated with animal hosts is easily transmitted to humans either by direct contact with resistant organisms or by transferring resistance genes into human pathogens. Gap statement. There are limited studies on antimicrobial resistance genes and genetic elements of multidrug-resistant (MDR) Escherichia coli in veterinary hospitals in Taiwan. Aim. The aim of this study was to investigate antimicrobial resistance genes in multidrug-resistant Escherichia coli from animals. Methodology. Between January 2014 and August 2015, 95 multidrug-resistant Escherichia coli isolates were obtained from pigs (n=66), avians (n=18), and other animals (n=11) in a veterinary hospital in Taiwan. Susceptibility testing to 24 antimicrobial agents of 14 antimicrobial classes was performed. Antimicrobial resistance genes, integrons, and insertion sequences were analysed by polymerase chain reaction and nucleotide sequencing. Pulsed field gel electrophoresis (PFGE), and multi locus sequence typing were used to explore the clonal relatedness of the study isolates. Results. Different antimicrobial resistance genes found in these isolates were associated with resistance to beta-lactams, tetra-cycline, phenicols, sulfonamides, and aminoglycosides. Fifty five of 95 E. coli isolates (55/95, 57.9 %) were not susceptible to extended-spectrum cephalosporins, and bla(CTX-M-55) (11/55, 20.0 %) and bla(CMY-2) (40/55, 72.7 %) were the most common extended spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL) and AmpC genes, respectively. Both bla(CTX-M) and bla(CMY-2) were present on conjugative plasmids that contained the insertion sequence ISEcp1 upstream of the bla genes. Plasmid-mediated FOX-3 beta-lactamase-producing E. coli was first identified in Taiwan. Forty isolates (40/95, 42 %) with class 1 integrons showed seven resistance phenotypes. Genotyping of 95 E. coli isolates revealed 91 different XbaI pulsotypes and 52 different sequence types. PFGE analysis revealed no clonal outbreaks in our study isolates. Conclusion. This study showed a high diversity of antimicrobial resistance genes and genotypes among MDR E. coli isolated from diseased livestock in Taiwan. To our knowledge, this is the first report of plasmid-mediated ESBL in FOX 3 beta-lactamase-producing E. coli isolates in Taiwan. MDR E. coli isolates from animal origins may contaminate the environment, resulting in public health concerns, indicating that MDR isolates from animals need to be continuously investigated.