# Occurence of the mobile colistin resistance gene mcr-1 in extended-β-lactamase-and pAmpC-β-lactamase-producing Escherichia coli from broilers in Lebanon

Myriam Mikhayel, Sébastien Leclercq, Benoît Doublet, Dolla Karam Sarkis

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## To cite this version:

Myriam Mikhayel, Sébastien Leclercq, Benoît Doublet, Dolla Karam Sarkis. Occurence of the mobile colistin resistance gene mcr-1 in extended-β-lactamase-and pAmpC-β-lactamase-producing Escherichia coli from broilers in Lebanon. 31. European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ECCMID 2021), Jul 2021, Online, France. [hal-03356477](https://hal.inrae.fr/hal-03356477)

HAL Id: hal-03356477

https://hal.inrae.fr/hal-03356477

Submitted on 28 Sep 2021

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Occurence of the mobile colistin resistance gene mcr-1 in extended-β-lactamase- and pAmpC-β-lactamase-producing Escherichia coli from broilers in Lebanon

Myriam Mikhayel ¹, ², Sébastien Leclercq ², Benoit Doublet ², Dolla Karam Sarkis ¹

¹Université Saint Joseph - Beirut (Lebanon) - Beirut (Lebanon), ²ISP, Université de Tours, INRAE - Nouzilly (France)

**Background** Poultry production is a main contributor of antimicrobial resistance arising from food-producing animals worldwide. In Lebanon, abusive use of antibiotics is frequent in chickens for prophylactic reasons. In absence of a surveillance system, our objective is to decipher the spread of expanded-spectrum cephalosporin (ESC)-resistant Escherichia coli in poultry in Lebanon.

**Methods** Rectal swabs (n=280) from 56 farms across the country were screened for the presence of ESC-resistant E. coli isolates. Antimicrobial susceptibility and expanded-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)/AmpC production were determined by the disk-diffusion method. Whole genome sequencing (WGS) of 104 representative isolates of E.coli was performed to determine the phylogenetic diversity, serotypes, sequence types (ST), acquired resistance genes, plasmids and virulence genes.

**Results** Fifty-two of 56 farms harboured broilers carrying ESC-resistant E.coli isolates that are also resistant to many other antibiotics classes. Among the 104 sequenced MDR E. coli isolates, the proportion of ESBL, pAmpC-producers and ESBL/pAmpC co-producers E.coli was 60%, 27.6%, and 12.4%, respectively. The most prevalent ESBL/pAmpC genes were blaCMY-2, blaCTX-M-3, blaCTX-M-15, blaCTX-M-27 and blaCTX-M-14b (n=42; 31; 15; 9; 7, respectively). Surprisingly, only one isolate carried the blaCTX-M-1 gene usually associated with livestock. Nineteen ESBL/pAmpC isolates carried also the mobile colistin resistance gene mcr-1. These multidrug-resistant (MDR) E. coli isolates represent diverse sequence-types, most well-known to be avian-associated (ST-117, ST-10, ST-48...). Numerous virulence genes were detected indicating the possible occurrence of avian pathogenic Escherichia coli (APEC) and/or extraintestinal pathogenic Escherichia coli (ExPEC) for humans. SNP-based phylogenetic analysis highlighted the spread of few clonal MDR strains between poultry farms at the country level.

**Conclusions** This survey illustrates the alarming prevalence of MDR E. coli resistant to medically-important antibiotics in broilers in Lebanon. This advocates the urge for surveillance programs of antimicrobial resistance in Lebanon and to reduce the abusive use of antibiotics to limit the spread of MDR in food-producing animals.