Prevalence, antibiograms, and transferable tet(O) plasmid of Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli isolated from raw chicken, pork, and human clinical cases in Korea.
The antibiotic resistance patterns and prevalence of the transferable tet(O) plasmid were investigated in Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli isolates from raw chicken, pork, and humans with clinical campylobacteriosis. A total of 180 C. jejuni and C. coli isolates were identified, and the prevalence rates of C. jejuni and C. coli in raw chicken samples were 83% (83 of 100) and 73% (73 of 100), respectively. Twelve percent (6 of 50) and 10% (5 of 50) of pork samples were contaminated with C. jejuni and C. coli, respectively. Disk diffusion susceptibility testing revealed that the most frequently detected resistance was to tetracycline (92.2%), followed by nalidixic acid (75.6%), ciprofloxacin (65.0%), azithromycin (41.5%), ampicillin (33.3%), and streptomycin (26.1%). Of the C. jejuni and C. coli isolates, 65.7% (n=109) contained plasmids carrying the tet(O) gene. Six C. jejuni isolates and two C. coli isolates with high-level resistance to tetracycline (MIC=256 microg/ml) harbored the tet(O) plasmid, which is transferable to other C. jejuni and C. coli isolates. These results demonstrate the presence of an interspecies transferable plasmid containing the tet(O) gene and a high prevalence of antibiotic resistance in Korean Campylobacter isolates and provide an understanding of the antibiotic resistance distribution among Campylobacter species in Korea.
Kim
Jun Man
JM
Department of Microbiology, College of Veterinary Medicine and BK21 Program for Veterinary Science, Seoul National University, Seoul 151-742, Korea.
Hong
Joonbae
J
Bae
Wonki
W
Koo
Hye Cheong
HC
Kim
So Hyun
SH
Park
Yong Ho
YH
D000818:Animals; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D017000:Campylobacter coli / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D016123:Campylobacter jejuni / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D002352:Carrier Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D002645:Chickens / Q000382:microbiology*; D015169:Colony Count, Microbial; D003257:Consumer Product Safety; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D024881:Drug Resistance, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics; D005506:Food Contamination / Q000032:analysis; D005516:Food Microbiology; D006801:Humans; D007723:Korea; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D010957:Plasmids / Q000235:genetics; D015995:Prevalence; D013552:Swine / Q000382:microbiology*; D013753:Tetracycline Resistance / Q000235:genetics
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D002352:Carrier Proteins; C083139:Tet O resistance protein, Bacteria