article · Antibiotics
Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli causes severe diarrhoeal illness in both humans and cattle, with multidrug resistance presenting a significant health concern. An investigation into three dairy farms in Egypt screened 240 samples collected from diarrhoeic calves, milk, and farm workers. Testing revealed that enteropathogenic Escherichia coli was present in 22.7 percent of the calves, 5.3 percent of the milk samples, and 20 percent of the workers. Every recovered isolate demonstrated multidrug resistance, showing particularly high resistance to ampicillin, tetracycline, cefazolin, and ciprofloxacin. Genetic screening identified multiple resistance genes, including beta-lactamase, quinolone resistance, and carbapenemase genes. Genetic analysis indicated high similarity between strains isolated from farm workers and those found in calves from the same farms, suggesting potential transmission between cattle and humans.
The presence of multidrug-resistant bacteria in farm environments threatens both animal welfare and human health. Finding identical, drug-resistant strains in dairy calves, milk, and agricultural workers shows that farms can act as reservoirs for dangerous infections, potentially spreading treatment-resistant diseases into the human food chain and wider community.
This early-stage surveillance research informs public health monitoring, veterinary diagnostics, and farm biosecurity protocols. While the abstract does not indicate a commercialisation pathway or direct product development, the findings provide baseline epidemiological evidence that could guide diagnostic developers, farm management services, and regulators seeking to control antimicrobial resistance in agricultural settings.
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Enteropathogenic <i>Escherichia coli</i> (EPEC) is a leading cause of diarrhoeagenic diseases in humans and cattle worldwide. The emergence of multidrug-resistant (MDR) EPEC from cattle sources is a public health concern. A total of 240 samples (75 diarrhoeic calves, 150 milk samples, and 15 workers) were examined for prevalence of EPEC in three dairy farms in Egypt. Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) traits were determined by antibiogram and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) detection of β-lactamase-encoding genes, plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance genes, and carbapenemase-encoding genes. The genetic relatedness of the isolates was assessed using repetitive extragenic palindromic sequence-based PCR (REP-PCR). EPEC isolates were detected in 22.7% (17/75) of diarrhoeic calves, 5.3% (8/150) of milk samples, and 20% (3/15) of worker samples. The detected serovars were O26 (5%), O111 (3.3%), O124 (1.6%), O126 (0.8%), and O55 (0.8%). AMR-EPEC (harbouring any AMR gene) was detected in 9.2% of samples. Among isolates, <i>bla</i><sub>TEM</sub> was the most detected gene (39.3%), followed by <i>bla</i><sub>SHV</sub> (32.1%) and <i>bla</i><sub>CTX-M-1</sub> (25%). The <i>qnrA</i>, <i>qnrB</i>, and <i>qnrS</i> genes were detected in 21.4%, 10.7%, and 7.1% of isolates, respectively. The <i>bla</i><sub>VIM</sub> gene was detected in 14.3% of isolates. All EPEC (100%) isolates were MDR. High resistance rates were reported for ampicillin (100%), tetracycline (89.3%), cefazolin (71%), and ciprofloxacin (64.3%). Three O26 isolates and two O111 isolates showed the highest multiple-antibiotic resistance (MAR) indices (0.85-0.92); these isolates harboured <i>bla</i><sub>SHV-12</sub> and <i>bla</i><sub>CTX-M-15</sub> genes, respectively. REP-PCR genotyping showed high genetic diversity of EPEC, although isolates belonging to the same serotype or farm were clustered together. Two worker isolates (O111 and O26) showed high genetic similarity (80-95%) with diarrhoeic calf isolates of matched serotypes/farms. This may highlight potential inter-species transmission within the farm. This study highlights the potential high risk of cattle (especially diarrhoeic calves) as disseminators of MDR-EPEC and/or their AMR genes in the study area. Prohibition of non-prescribed use of antibiotics in dairy farms in Egypt is strongly warranted.
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DOI: 10.3390/antibiotics11080999
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