Multidrug-Resistant Salmonella spp. Isolated from Apparently Healthy Pigeons in a Live Bird Market in Chattogram, Bangladesh
Zamila Bueaza Bupasha, Ruhena Begum, Sharna Karmakar, Rahima Akter, Md Bayzid, Abdul Ahad, Md Samun Sarker
Abstract
Multidrug-resistant Salmonella could pose a severe public health threat. The current study aimed to investigate the prevalence of antibiotic resistance and some antibiotic-resistant genes in Salmonella spp. isolated from pigeons in a live bird market, Chattogram, Bangladesh. A total of 100 cloacal swab samples were collected aseptically from apparently healthy pigeons in the live bird market, namely Riazuddin Bazar in Chattogram city, Bangladesh. Different bacteriological and biochemical tests were used for the isolation and identification of Salmonella spp. The susceptibility test of Salmonella isolates to different antibiotics was performed by the disk diffusion method. PCR assay using specific primers was used for antibiotic resistance genes detection. The results indicated that the prevalence of Salmonella spp. was 29% in sampled birds. The highest antibiotic resistance rate was found to be ampicillin (93.1%), followed by both sulfamethoxazole-trimethoprim and tetracycline (86.2%). In contrast, 65.5% of isolates were found sensitive to ciprofloxacin, followed by colistin (62.1%), kanamycin (55.2%), and gentamicin (48.3%). 96.6% of Salmonella isolates were classified as multidrug-resistant and harbored blaTEM, tetA, sul1, and sul2 genes. In conclusion, pigeons as carriers of antibiotic-resistant Salmonella spp. may pose a health risk to other birds and humans.