Serotyping, antibiotic susceptibility, and virulence genes screening of isolates obtained from diarrheic buffalo calves in Egyptian farms.

AIM

In Egypt as in many other countries, river water buffalo () is considered an important source of high-quality milk and meat supply. The objective of this study was to investigate serotypes, virulence genes, and antibiotic resistance determinants profiles of isolated from buffalo at some places in Egypt; noticibly, this issue was not discussed in the country yet.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A number of 58 rectal samples were collected from diarrheic buffalo calves in different regions in Egypt, and bacteriological investigated for existence. The isolates were biochemically, serologicaly identified, tested for antibiotic susceptibility, and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analyzed for the presence of antibiotic resistance determinants and virulence genes.

RESULTS

Overall 14 isolates typed as (24.1%); 6 were belonged to serogroup O78 (10.3%), followed by O125 (4 isolates, 6.9%), then O158 (3 isolates, 5.2%) and one isolate O8 (1.7%), among them, there were 5 isolates showed a picture of hemolysis (35.7%). The isolates exhibited a high resistance to β lactams over 60%, followed by sulfa (50%) and aminoglucoside (42.8%) group, in the same time the isolates were sensitive to quinolone, trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, tetracycline (100%), and cephalosporine groups (71.4%). A multiplex PCR was applied to the 14 isolates revealed that all were carrying at least one gene, as 10 carried TEM (71.4%), 8 1 (57.1%), and 6 B (42.8%), and 9 isolates could be considered multidrug resistant (MDR) by an incidence of 64.3%. A PCR survey was stratified for the most important virulence genes, and showed the presence of Shiga toxins in 9 isolates carried either one or the two genes (64.3%), 5 isolates carried A gene (35.7%), and in 2 isolates only (14.3%), all isolates carried at least one virulence gene except two (85.7%).

CONCLUSION

The obtained data displayed that in Egypt, buffalo as well as other ruminants could be a potential source of MDR pathogenic variants which have a public health importance.