Antimicrobial-resistant Klebsiella species isolated from free-range chicken samples in an informal settlement

摘要

Sub-therapeutic doses of antimicrobial agents are administeredroutinely to poultry to aid growth and to prevent disease, with prolonged exposureoften resulting in bacterial resistance. Crossover of antibiotic resistant bacteriafrom poultry to humans poses a risk to human health.In this study, 17 chicken samples collected from a vendoroperating in an informal settlement in the Cape Town Metropolitan area,South Africa were screened for antimicrobial-resistant Gram-negative bacilliusing the Kirby Bauer disk diffusion assay.In total, six antibiotics were screened: ampicillin, ciprofloxacin, gentamicin,nalidixic acid, tetracycline and trimethoprim. Surprisingly, Klebsiellaozaenae was identified in 96 and K. rhinoscleromatis in 6 (n = 102) of the samplestested. Interestingly, ~40% of the isolated Klebsiella spp. showed multipleresistance to at least three of the six antibiotics tested.Klebsiella ozaenae and K. rhinoscleromatis cause clinical chronicrhinitis and are almost exclusively associated with people living in areas of poorhygiene.