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Gene pool transmission of multidrug resistance among Campylobacter from livestock, sewage and human disease
Author(s) -
Mourkas Evangelos,
FlorezCuadrado Diego,
Pascoe Ben,
Calland Jessica K.,
Bayliss Sion C.,
Mageiros Leonardos,
Méric Guillaume,
Hitchings Matthew D.,
Quesada Alberto,
Porrero Concepción,
UgarteRuiz María,
GutiérrezFernández José,
Domínguez Lucas,
Sheppard Samuel K.
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
environmental microbiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.954
H-Index - 188
eISSN - 1462-2920
pISSN - 1462-2912
DOI - 10.1111/1462-2920.14760
Subject(s) - biology , campylobacter , campylobacter coli , campylobacter jejuni , antibiotic resistance , mobile genetic elements , multiple drug resistance , microbiology and biotechnology , plasmid , gene , drug resistance , genetics , antibiotics , bacteria
Summary The use of antimicrobials in human and veterinary medicine has coincided with a rise in antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in the food‐borne pathogens Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli . Faecal contamination from the main reservoir hosts (livestock, especially poultry) is the principal route of human infection but little is known about the spread of AMR among source and sink populations. In particular, questions remain about how Campylobacter resistomes interact between species and hosts, and the potential role of sewage as a conduit for the spread of AMR. Here, we investigate the genomic variation associated with AMR in 168 C. jejuni and 92 C. coli strains isolated from humans, livestock and urban effluents in Spain. AMR was tested in vitro and isolate genomes were sequenced and screened for putative AMR genes and alleles. Genes associated with resistance to multiple drug classes were observed in both species and were commonly present in multidrug‐resistant genomic islands (GIs), often located on plasmids or mobile elements. In many cases, these loci had alleles that were shared among C. jejuni and C. coli consistent with horizontal transfer. Our results suggest that specific antibiotic resistance genes have spread among Campylobacter isolated from humans, animals and the environment.