Prevalence and characterisation of antimicrobial resistance pattern of ESBL-producing Escherichia coli isolated from poultry in Banaskantha district, India

Resistance to antimicrobial drugs among bacterial pathogens is an emerging problem. Bacterial resistance to betalactam antibiotics has grown significantly. The present study aims at isolation, identification, phenotypic confirmation of ESBL-producer, and antimicrobial resistance pattern of Escherichia coli isolated from poultry faecal samples. A total of 120 samples were collected from 30 different poultry farms in Banaskantha district. 108 out of 120 samples were confirmed as E. coli using microscopic, biochemical tests, followed by species-specific 16S rRNA PCR; among them, broiler 65 (92.85%) and layer 43 (86%) were confirmed as E. coli. The phenotypic ESBL-production was detected in 54 (50%) isolates with broiler (29.62%) and layer (20.28%) farms. The antibiotic sensitivity pattern revealed the highest resistance was identified against Cefpodoxime 100%, followed by Tetracycline 97.22%, Amoxicillin + Clavulanic acid 95.37%, Nalidixic Acid 94.44%, Enrofloxacin 91.66%, Co-trimaxazole 90.74%, Ampicillin 78.70% and Amikacin 57.40%. The 95.37% and 77.77% isolates showed susceptibility to Imipenem and Cefoxitin, respectively. Thus, it may be concluded that in the current study, isolates revealed multidrug resistance against antimicrobial agents commonly used in veterinary and human practice. This implies that the existing practice of misuse and improper use of antibiotics in poultry accelerates antimicrobial resistance in poultry.