Immunopharmacology Research Laboratory, Institute of Biology, College of Science, University of the Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City, Metropolitan Manila, 1101, Philippines.
Department of Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences, Pampanga St ate Agricultural University, Magalang, Pampanga, 2011, Philippines.
Trop Biomed. 2022 Mar 1;39(1):150-159. doi: 10.47665/tb.39.1.020.
The poultry industry is a major contributor to the Philippine economy. Given the rising concerns in antibiotic resistance and food security, farmers need to maximize profit and output while ensuring safe and ecologically sustainable farming practices. This study surveyed antibiotic use in 12 commercial poultry farms in the Philippines. All farms reported the use of medically important antibiotics either for prophylaxis (91.67%), metaphylaxis (100%), and growth promotion (50%). Considering the widespread use of medically important antibiotics, we then investigated the potential contribution of local antibiotic treatment protocols to the emergence of antibiotic resistance genes in the fecal samples of broiler chickens under a controlled experimental setup. Significantly, we observed the emergence of antibiotic resistance genes ( ermB) in fecal samples of antibiotic-treated broilers after 7 days and 21 days in antibiotic-free broilers raised in the same farming environment. These data were corroborated by antibiotic resistance gene profiles of fecal samples from commercial poultry farms. Antibiotic resistance genes ( tetA, tetB, tetU, tetW, qnrB, qnrS) were prevalent in the fecal samples of antibiotic-treated broilers treated with tetracycline and quinolone antibiotics. Therefore, our study provides concrete evidence for the strong correlation between the use of medically important antibiotics in poultry farming and the emergence of antibiotic resistance genes. Antimicrobial resistance is a major contributor to failures in infectious disease treatment strategies in humans and animals. Therefore, the cost-benefit ratio of poorly regulated antibiotic treatment protocols in poultry farming could have a long-term detrimental impact on our economy and public health. Our study suggests the need to review our current policies and practices in using medically important antibiotics in the Philippine poultry industry.
家禽业是菲律宾经济的主要贡献者。鉴于人们对抗生素耐药性和食品安全的担忧日益增加，农民需要在确保安全和生态可持续农业实践的同时，最大限度地提高利润和产量。本研究调查了菲律宾 12 家商业家禽养殖场的抗生素使用情况。所有农场都报告了使用医学上重要的抗生素，无论是用于预防（91.67%）、治疗（100%）还是促进生长（50%）。考虑到医学上重要的抗生素广泛使用，我们随后在受控实验设置下调查了当地抗生素治疗方案对抗生素耐药基因在肉鸡粪便样本中的出现的潜在贡献。重要的是，我们观察到在抗生素自由饲养环境中饲养的抗生素处理肉鸡 7 天和 21 天后，粪便样本中出现了抗生素耐药基因（ermB）。这些数据得到了来自商业家禽养殖场粪便样本的抗生素耐药基因图谱的证实。在接受四环素和喹诺酮类抗生素治疗的抗生素处理肉鸡的粪便样本中，普遍存在抗生素耐药基因（tetA、tetB、tetU、tetW、qnrB、qnrS）。因此，我们的研究为家禽养殖中使用医学上重要的抗生素与抗生素耐药基因的出现之间存在很强的相关性提供了具体证据。抗生素耐药性是人类和动物传染病治疗策略失败的主要原因。因此，在菲律宾家禽养殖业中，对管理不善的抗生素治疗方案的成本效益比可能会对我们的经济和公共卫生产生长期的不利影响。我们的研究表明，需要审查我们目前在菲律宾家禽业中使用医学上重要的抗生素的政策和做法。
