Plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance genes in fecal bacteria from rooks commonly wintering throughout Europe.
This study concerned the occurrence of fecal bacteria with plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance (PMQR) genes in rooks (Corvus frugilegus, medium-sized corvid birds) wintering in continental Europe during winter 2010/2011. Samples of fresh rook feces were taken by cotton swabs at nine roosting places in eight European countries. Samples were transported to one laboratory and placed in buffered peptone water (BPW). The samples from BPW were enriched and subcultivated onto MacConkey agar (MCA) supplemented with ciprofloxacin (0.06 mg/L) to isolate fluoroquinolone-resistant bacteria. DNA was isolated from smears of bacterial colonies growing on MCA and tested by PCR for PMQR genes aac(6')-Ib, qepA, qnrA, qnrB, qnrC, qnrD, qnrS, and oqxAB. All the PCR products were further analyzed by sequencing. Ciprofloxacin-resistant bacteria were isolated from 37% (392 positive/1,073 examined) of samples. Frequencies of samples with ciprofloxacin-resistant isolates ranged significantly from 3% to 92% in different countries. The qnrS1 gene was found in 154 samples and qnrS2 in 2 samples. The gene aac(6')-Ib-cr was found in 16 samples. Thirteen samples were positive for qnrB genes in variants qnrB6 (one sample), qnrB18 (one), qnrB19 (one), qnrB29 (one), and qnrB49 (new variant) (one). Both the qnrD and oqxAB genes were detected in six samples. The genes qnrA, qnrC, and qepA were not found. Wintering omnivorous rooks in Europe were commonly colonized by bacteria supposedly Enterobacteriaceae with PMQR genes. Rooks may disseminate these epidemiologically important bacteria over long distances and pose a risk for environmental contamination.
Department of Biology and Wildlife Diseases, University of Veterinary and Pharmaceutical Sciences Brno, Brno, Czech Republic. literaki@vfu.cz
Ivan
I
Literak
Maria
M
Micudova
Dagmar
D
Tausova
Alois
A
Cizek
Monika
M
Dolejska
Ivo
I
Papousek
Jakub
J
Prochazka
Jiri
J
Vojtech
Frank
F
Borleis
Lisa
L
Guardone
Sebastian
S
Guenther
Jozef
J
Hordowski
Cyrille
C
Lejas
Wlodzimierz
W
Meissner
Benito Fuertes
BF
Marcos
Marko
M
Tucakov
D000818:Animals; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D001715:Bird Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology; D046368:Crows / Q000382:microbiology*; D004755:Enterobacteriaceae / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D004756:Enterobacteriaceae Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D005060:Europe / Q000453:epidemiology; D005243:Feces / Q000382:microbiology; D024841:Fluoroquinolones / Q000494:pharmacology; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D010957:Plasmids / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000662:veterinary*; D020033:Protein Isoforms / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; D024841:Fluoroquinolones; D020033:Protein Isoforms; C485384:Qnr protein, E coli