High quantities of multidrug-resistant Escherichia coli are present in the Mach ángara urban river in Quito, Ecuador.

High quantities of multidrug-resistant Escherichia coli are present in the Machángara urban river in Quito, Ecuador. J Water Health. 2020 Feb;18(1):67-76 Authors: Ortega-Paredes D, Barba P, Mena-López S, Espinel N, Crespo V, Zurita J Abstract Urban river pollution by multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacteria constitutes an important public health concern. Epidemiologically important strains of MDR Escherichia coli transmissible at the human-animal-environment interfaces are especially worrying. Quantifying and characterizing MDR E. coli at a molecular level is thus imperative for understanding its epidemiology in natural environments and its role in the spread of resistance in precise geographical areas. Cefotaxime-resistant E. coli was characterized along the watercourse of the major urban river in Quito. Our results showed high quantities of cefotaxime-resistant E. coli (2.7 × 103-5.4 × 105 CFU/100 mL). The antimicrobial resistance index (ARI) revealed the exposure of the river to antibiotic contamination, and the multiple antibiotic resistance index indicated a high risk of contamination. The blaCTX-M-15 gene was the most prevalent in our samples. Isolates also had class 1 integrons carrying aminoglycoside-modifying enzymes and folate pathway inhibitors. The isolates belonged to phylogroups A, B1 and D. Clonal complex 10 was found to be the most prevalent (ST10, ST44 and ST 167), followed by ST162, ST394 and ST46. Our study provides ...
Source: Journal of Water and Health - Category: Environmental Health Tags: J Water Health Source Type: research