College of Marine Technology and Environment, Dalian Ocean University, China.
Department of Animal Production, Ghent University, Belgium.
Clin Infect Dis. 2020 May 23;70(11):2386-2395. doi: 10.1093/cid/ciz642.
Human-use probiotics have recently been associated with clinical infections and antibiotic resistance transfer, raising public concern over their safety. However, despite their extensive application in aquaculture and animal husbandry, the safety of animal-use probiotics remains poorly described.
We evaluated the safety of 92 animal-use probiotics from China. The pattern of spread of pathogens from probiotics and the consequent public health implications were also examined by conducting in-field genomic surveillance at 2 farms.
A total of 123 probiotic Bacillus species isolates were obtained from 92 brands of probiotics, of which 45 isolates were resistant to antibiotics. Notably, 33.7% of probiotic products were contaminated with life-threatening pathogens such as Klebsiella pneumoniae. Genomic surveillance at a chicken farm identified an anthrax toxin-positive Bacillus cereus strain in a probiotic product used as a feed supplement, which was transferred into the groundwater and to a nearby fish farm. Following up retrospective analysis of the surveillance data during 2015-2018 in 3 provinces retrieved 2 B. cereus strains from human with intestinal anthrax symptoms and confirmed the transmission of B. cereus from farm to human. Surveillance of anthrax toxin revealed that cya was detected in 8 of 31 farms.
This study provides the first national safety survey of animal-use probiotics in China and confirms the spillover effects of probiotics from the farms to human. These results suggest that the large-scale application of pathogen-containing probiotics leads to the transfer of pathogens, with worrisome implications for public health. Good Manufacturing Practice should be implemented during the production of all probiotics.Animal-use probiotic products are frequently contaminated with viable pathogenic bacteria. This study revealed that virulent probiotic organisms and contaminating pathogens were colonized with farm animals and shed into the environment, which facilitated the transfer of pathogens to humans.
人类使用的益生菌最近与临床感染和抗生素耐药性转移有关，引起了公众对其安全性的关注。然而，尽管它们在水产养殖和畜牧业中得到了广泛应用，但动物用益生菌的安全性仍描述不足。
我们评估了来自中国的 92 种动物用益生菌的安全性。还通过在 2 个农场进行现场基因组监测，研究了益生菌传播病原体的模式及其对公共卫生的影响。
从 92 种益生菌品牌中获得了 123 株益生菌芽孢杆菌分离株，其中 45 株对抗生素有耐药性。值得注意的是，33.7%的益生菌产品受到如肺炎克雷伯菌等危及生命的病原体污染。在一个养鸡场进行的基因组监测发现，一种用作饲料添加剂的益生菌产品中存在炭疽毒素阳性的蜡样芽孢杆菌菌株，该菌株转移到了地下水和附近的一个鱼场。对 2015-2018 年 3 个省份的监测数据进行回顾性分析，从有肠道炭疽症状的人类中检索到 2 株蜡样芽孢杆菌菌株，并证实了芽孢杆菌从农场到人类的传播。炭疽毒素监测显示，31 个农场中有 8 个检测到 cya。
本研究提供了中国首次全国性的动物用益生菌安全性调查，并证实了益生菌从农场溢出到人类的影响。这些结果表明，含有病原体的益生菌的大规模应用导致了病原体的转移，对公共卫生构成了令人担忧的威胁。应在所有益生菌的生产过程中实施良好生产规范。动物用益生菌产品经常受到有活力的致病菌的污染。本研究表明，有活力的益生菌生物和污染的病原体与农场动物一起定植，并排放到环境中，这促进了病原体向人类的转移。
