Genomic insights of high-risk clones of ESBL-producing Escherichia coli isolated from community infections and commercial meat in southern Brazil
João Gabriel Material Soncini, Louise Cerdeira, Elder Sano, Vanessa Lumi Koga, Ariane Tiemy Tizura, Zuleica Naomi Tano, Gerson Nakazato, Renata Katsuko Takayama Kobayashi, Caio Augusto Martins Aires, Nilton Lincopán, Eliana Carolina Vespero
Abstract
During a microbiological and genomic surveillance study conducted to investigate the molecular epidemiology of extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)-producing Escherichia coli from community-acquired urinary tract infections (UTI) and commercial meat samples, in a Brazilian city with a high occurrence of infections by ESBL-producing bacteria, we have identified the presence of CTX-M (-2, -14, -15, -24, -27 and -55)-producing E. coli of international clones ST38, ST117, ST131 and ST354. The ST131 was more prevalent in human samples, and worryingly the high-risk ST131-C1-M27 was identified in human infections for the first time. We also detected CTX-M-55-producing E. coli ST117 from meat samples (i.e., chicken and pork) and human infections. Moreover, the clinically relevant CTX-M-24-positive E. coli ST354 clone was detected for the first time in human samples. In summary, our results highlight a potential of commercialized meat as a reservoir of high-priority E. coli lineages in the community, whereas the identification of E. coli ST131-C1-M27 indicates that novel pandemic clones have emerged in Brazil, constituting a public health issue.