title: Extended-spectrum β-lactamase- and AmpC-producing enterobacteria in healthy broiler chickens, Germany.
abstract: During 2010, we evaluated the presence of extended-spectrum β-lactamase- and AmpC-producing enterobacteria in broiler chickens at slaughter. Samples (70 carcasses and 51 ceca) from 4 flocks were analyzed by direct plating and after enrichment. Extended-spectrum β-lactamase producers were found in 88.6% and 72.5% of carcasses and ceca, respectively; AmpC producers were found in 52.9% and 56.9% of carcasses and ceca, respectively. Most isolates were identified as Escherichia coli; Enterobacter cloacae (cecum) and Proteus mirabilis (carcass) were found in 2 samples each. Molecular characterization revealed the domination of CTX-M genes; plasmidic AmpC was CIT-like. Phylogenetic grouping of E. coli showed types A (31.5%), B1 (20.2%), B2 (13.5%), and D (34.8%). These findings provide evidence that healthy broilers in Germany are a source for the dissemination of transmissible resistance mechanisms in enterobacteria brought from the rearing environment into the food chain during slaughtering.
authors.affiliation: University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Hannover, Germany.
authors.forename: Felix
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Reich
authors.forename: Viktoria
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Atanassova
authors.forename: Günter
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Klein
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D002645:Chickens / Q000382:microbiology*; D004755:Enterobacteriaceae / Q000187:drug effects / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000187:drug effects / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000235:genetics; D005858:Germany; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D058889:Molecular Typing; D010641:Phenotype; D010802:Phylogeny; D015995:Prevalence; D018440:beta-Lactam Resistance; D001618:beta-Lactamases / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; C048795:AmpC beta-lactamases; D001618:beta-Lactamases
keywords: AmpC; ESBL; Enterobacter cloacae; Enterobacteriaceae; Germany; Proteus mirabilis; bacteria; chickens; foodborne diseases; slaughterhouse; zoonoses