Prevalence of antimicrobial resistance genes among Escherichia coli isolated from poultry

Antimicrobial resistance has become a global threat. In the poultry industry, antibiotic usage has been widespread and been used for multiple purposes, viz. growth promoters, therapeutic agent and prophylaxis. This usage has probably led to accumulation of antimicrobial resistant genes. A study on presence of antibiotic resistant genes in poultry farms of Ferozepur and Ludhiana, Punjab were undertaken. A total of 50 faecal samples were collected from eight farms. The samples were processed for isolation of E. coli by using selective media, were identified using various biochemical tests and confirmed with the help of PCR. A total of 35 E. coli isolates were obtained and all were subjected to antibiotic sensitivity test against 10 antibiotics. Also, these isolates were subjected to amplification of antibiotic resistance genes, viz. blaTEM, blaSHV, DHAM, MOXM, sul1, dhfrV, aadA, tetA and tetB using published primers. The isolates revealed resistance to penicillin (100%), ampicillin/sulbactum (100%), erythromycin (94.28%), streptomycin (91.4%), tetracycline (60%), chloramphenicol (60%), trimethoprim (51.4%), co-trimoxazole (48.57%), gentamicin (8.5%) and colistin (8.5%). Seven isolates were found to be positive for blaTEM, nine for sulI, four for dhfrV, 11 for aadA and cmlA, respectively, while none of the isolate showed the blaSHV, DHAM, MOXM, tetA and tetB. The present study revealed that the multiple AMR genes may be prevalent among E. coli isolates of poultry origin which needs urgent attention.