Pathotype and Antibiotic Resistance Gene Distributions of Escherichia coli Isolates from Broiler Chickens Raised on Antimicrobial-Supplemented Diets

The impact of feed supplementation with bambermycin, monensin, narasin, virginiamycin, chlortetracycline, penicillin, salinomycin, and bacitracin on the distribution of Escherichia coli pathotypes in broiler chickens was investigated using an E. coli virulence DNA microarray. Among 256 E. coli isolates examined, 59 (23%) were classified as potentially extraintestinal pathogenic E. coli (ExPEC), while 197 (77%) were considered commensal. Except for chlortetracycline treatment, the pathotype distribution was not significantly different among treatments (P > 0.05). Within the 59 ExPEC isolates, 44 (75%) were determined to be potentially avian pathogenic E. coli (APEC), with the remaining 15 (25%) considered potentially “other” ExPEC isolates. The distribution within phylogenetic groups showed that 52 (88%) of the ExPEC isolates belonged to groups B2 and D, with the majority of APEC isolates classified as group D and most commensal isolates (170, 86%) as group A or B1. Indirect assessment of the presence of the virulence plasmid pAPEC-O2-ColV showed a strong association of the plasmid with APEC isolates. Among the 256 isolates, 224 (88%) possessed at least one antimicrobial resistance gene, with nearly half (107, 42%) showing multiple resistance genes. The majority of resistance genes were distributed among commensal isolates. Considering that the simultaneous detection of antimicrobial resistance tet(A), sulI, and bla_TEM genes and the integron class I indicated a potential presence of the resistance pAPEC-O2-R plasmid, the results revealed that 35 (14%) of the isolates, all commensals, possessed this multigene resistance plasmid. The virulence plasmid was never found in combination with the antimicrobial resistance plasmid. The presence of the ColV plasmid or the combination of iss and tsh genes in the majority of APEC isolates supports the notion that when found together, the plasmid, iss, and tsh serve as good markers for APEC. These data indicate that different resistant E. coli pathotypes can be found in broiler chickens and that the distribution of such pathotypes and certain virulence determinants could be modulated by antimicrobial agent feed supplementation.Several classes of antimicrobial agents, such as glycolipids (bambermycin), cyclic peptides (bacitracin), ionophores (monensin and salinomycin), streptogramins (virginiamycin), and β-lactams (penicillin), are widely used as food additives in modern animal husbandry to prevent infections and promote growth (6). Increasing antimicrobial resistance in animals and its potential threat to human health led to the ban of bacitracin, spiramycin, tylosin, and virginiamycin as feeding additives by the European Union in 1999 (7, 46). Although this precautionary measure is still controversial because of being seen as having a negligible impact on human health, negative consequences for animal health and welfare, including economic losses for farmers, were subsequently observed in Europe (7). In stark contrast, however, the ban has been beneficial in reducing the total quantity of antibiotics administered to food animals (7, 47). Under good production conditions and correct use of antibiotics, poultry production is reported to be competitive (14, 47, 48) and even beneficial in reducing antimicrobial resistance in important food animal reservoirs and thus the potential threat to public health (48).Escherichia coli is generally considered a commensal member of the normal gastrointestinal microflora in humans and animals, yet some strains are known to cause serious morbidity and mortality. The expression of various virulence factors, which affect cellular processes, can result in different clinical diseases, such as cystitis, pyelonephritis, sepsis/meningitis, and gastroenteritis. The possession of different virulence gene subsets can further define the E. coli pathotype (31). The extraintestinal pathogenic E. coli (ExPEC) strains are epidemiologically and phylogenetically distinct from both intestinal pathogenic and commensal strains (43). In North America, annually, several million cases of urinary tract infections, abdominal infections, pelvic infections, pneumonia, meningitis, and sepsis are caused by ExPEC (42). In poultry production, avian pathogenic E. coli (APEC) is responsible for significant economic losses. APEC strains induce extraintestinal diseases such as air sacculitis, colibacillosis, polysorositis, and septicemia in birds (9, 21, 22, 31, 35, 45). Although no specific set of virulence factors has been clearly linked to APEC strains, most identified virulence factors are similar to those frequently associated with ExPEC (36).Bearing in mind that the avian intestinal environment has been considered a reservoir of E. coli having zoonotic potential (15) and the possible contamination of poultry products with such bacteria during slaughter, the impact of antimicrobial feeding additives on the distribution and dissemination of bacterial pathotypes and antibiotic resistance needs to be explored to address human, animal, and environmental health concerns. To this end, an E. coli DNA virulence microarray previously employed to assess the genotypes (virulence and antibiotic resistance genes) of E. coli strains isolated from different environmental ecosystems and from the chicken intestinal tract (1, 10, 19, 20, 33) was used. The aim of the present trial was to investigate the distributions of pathotypes and of virulence and antibiotic resistance genes in E. coli isolates from broilers fed with antimicrobial supplementation diets including bambermycin, penicillin, salinomycin, bacitracin, chlortetracycline, virginiamycin, monensin, and narasin.