Presence of the Extended-Spectrum-β-Lactamase and Plasmid-Mediated AmpC-Encoding Genes in <i>Escherichia coli</i> from Companion Animals-A Study from a University-Based Veterinary Hospital in Taipei, Taiwan

• Main Authors: Fang-Ling Liu (Author), Nan-Ling Kuan (Author), Kuang-Sheng Yeh (Author)
• Format: Book
• Published: MDPI AG, 2021-12-01T00:00:00Z.
• Subjects: article
• Online Access: Connect to this object online.
• Notes: 10.3390/antibiotics10121536; 2079-6382
• Keywords: extended-spectrum-β-lactamase; plasmid-mediated AmpC; <i>Escherichia coli</i>; companion animals; Therapeutics. Pharmacology; RM1-950
• Source: Antibiotics, Vol 10, Iss 12, p 1536 (2021)

Extended-spectrum-β-lactamase (ESBL) and AmpC β-lactamase are two enzymes commonly found in <i>Enterobacteriaceae</i> that confer resistance to major antibiotics, such as third-generation cephalosporins that are widely prescribed for both human and animals. We screened for <i>Escherichia coli</i> producing ESBL and plasmid-mediated AmpC β-lactamase (pAmpC) from dogs and cats brought to National Taiwan University Veterinary Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan from 29 June 2020, to 31 December 2020. The genotypes and phylogenetic relatedness of these <i>E. coli</i> were also analyzed. Fifty samples of <i>E. coli</i> obtained from 249 bacterial isolates were included in this study. Among them, eight isolates had ESBL, seven had pAmpC, and one had both. Thirty-two percent (16/50) of <i>E. coli</i> isolates were resistant to third-generation cephalosporins. The detected ESBL genes included the <i>bla</i>_CTX-M-1 and <i>bla</i>_CTX-M-9 groups, and the <i>bla</i>_CMY-2 group was the only gene type found in pAmpC. ESBL-producing <i>E. coli</i> belonged to the pathogenic phylogroup B2, and the sequence types (STs) were ST131 and ST1193. Three isolates were determined to be ST131-O25b, a highly virulent epidemic clone. The pAmpC-producing <i>E. coli</i> were distributed in multiple phylogroups, primarily the commensal phylogroup B1. The STs of the pAmpC-producing <i>E. coli</i> included ST155, ST315, ST617, ST457, ST767, ST372, and ST93; all of these have been reported in humans and animals. Imipenem was active against all the ESBL/pAmpC-producing <i>E. coli</i>; however, since in humans it is a last-resort antimicrobial, its use in companion animals should be restricted.