Elsohaby Ibrahim, Samy Ahmed, Elmoslemany Ahmed, Alorabi Mohammed, Alkafafy Mohamed, Aldoweriej Ali, Al-Marri Theeb, Elbehiry Ayman, Fayez Mahmoud
Department of Animal Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Zagazig University, Zagazig City 44511, Egypt.
Department of Health Management, Atlantic Veterinary College, University of Prince Edward Island, Charlottetown, PE C1A 4P3, Canada.
Antibiotics (Basel). 2021 Mar 5;10(3):260. doi: 10.3390/antibiotics10030260.
Migratory wild birds acquire antimicrobial-resistant (AMR) bacteria from contaminated habitats and then act as reservoirs and potential spreaders of resistant elements through migration. However, the role of migratory wild birds as antimicrobial disseminators in the Arabian Peninsula desert, which represents a transit point for birds migrating all over Asia, Africa, and Europe not yet clear. Therefore, the present study objective was to determine antimicrobial-resistant bacteria in samples collected from migratory wild birds around Al-Asfar Lake, located in Al-Ahsa Oasis, Eastern Saudi Arabia, with a particular focus on virulence and resistance genes. Cloacal swabs were collected from 210 migratory wild birds represent four species around Al-Asfar. , , and spp. have been recovered from 90 (42.9%), 37 (17.6%), and 5 (2.4%) birds, respectively. Out of them, 19 (14.4%) were a mixed infection. All samples were subjected to AMR phenotypic characterization, and results revealed (14-41%) and (16-54%) of and spp. isolates were resistant to penicillins, sulfonamides, aminoglycoside, and tetracycline antibiotics. Multidrug-resistant (MDR) and spp. were identified in 13 (14.4%) and 7 (18.9%) isolates, respectively. However, none of the isolates were MDR. Of the 90 isolates, only 9 (10%) and 5 (5.6%) isolates showed the presence of and virulence-associated genes, respectively. However, both and genes were identified in four (4.4%) isolates. None of the isolates carried the and virulence-associated genes. The AMR associated genes , , , , , and were identified in 7 (7.8%), 5 (5.6%), 1 (1.1%), 8 (8.9%), 4 (4.4%), and 6 (6.7%) isolates, respectively. While the gene was not detected in any of the spp. isolates. Regarding migratory wild bird species, bacterial recovery, mixed infection, MDR, and AMR index were relatively higher in aquatic-associated species. Overall, the results showed that migratory wild birds around Al-Asfar Lake could act as a reservoir for AMR bacteria enabling them to have a potential role in maintaining, developing, and disseminating AMR bacteria. Furthermore, results highlight the importance of considering migratory wild birds when studying the ecology of AMR.
迁徙野生鸟类从受污染的栖息地获取抗微生物药物耐药性（AMR）细菌，然后通过迁徙充当耐药菌的储存库和潜在传播者。然而，在阿拉伯半岛沙漠地区，迁徙野生鸟类作为抗微生物药物传播者的作用尚不清楚，该地区是亚洲、非洲和欧洲鸟类迁徙的中转站。因此，本研究的目的是确定从沙特阿拉伯东部艾哈萨绿洲阿斯法尔湖周边迁徙野生鸟类采集的样本中的抗微生物药物耐药菌，特别关注其毒力和耐药基因。从阿斯法尔湖周边代表四个物种的210只迁徙野生鸟类采集泄殖腔拭子。分别从90只（42.9%）、37只（17.6%）和5只（2.4%）鸟类中分离出大肠杆菌、肺炎克雷伯菌和金黄色葡萄球菌。其中，19只（14.4%）为混合感染。所有样本均进行了AMR表型特征分析，结果显示大肠杆菌和肺炎克雷伯菌分离株分别有14% - 41%和16% - 54%对青霉素、磺胺类、氨基糖苷类和四环素类抗生素耐药。分别在13株（14.4%）和7株（18.9%）分离株中鉴定出多重耐药（MDR）大肠杆菌和肺炎克雷伯菌。然而，金黄色葡萄球菌分离株均未表现出MDR。在90株大肠杆菌分离株中，仅9株（10%）和5株（5.6%）分离株分别显示存在stx和hly毒力相关基因。然而，在4株（4.4%）分离株中同时鉴定出stx和hly基因。金黄色葡萄球菌分离株均未携带spa和fnbA毒力相关基因。在大肠杆菌AMR相关基因blaTEM、blaCTX-M、blaSHV、tetA、tetB、tetC和aac(6’)-Ib-cr分别在7株（7.8%）、5株（5.6%）、1株（1.1%）、8株（8.9%）、4株（4.4%）和6株（6.7%）分离株中被鉴定出来。而在任何肺炎克雷伯菌分离株中均未检测到blaNDM基因。关于迁徙野生鸟类物种，与水生相关的物种中细菌回收率、混合感染、MDR和AMR指数相对较高。总体而言，结果表明阿斯法尔湖周边的迁徙野生鸟类可能充当AMR细菌的储存库，使其在维持、发展和传播AMR细菌方面具有潜在作用。此外，结果突出了在研究AMR生态学中考虑迁徙野生鸟类的重要性。
