PHENOTYPIC AND GENOTYPIC DETECTION OF ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE AMONG Plesiomonas shigelloides ISOLATED FROM EBUTE RIVER, SOUTHWEST NIGERIA

Abstract

Plesiomonas shigelloides, is an emerging enteric pathogen found in water with high resistance ability against commonly used antibiotics. This study evaluated the incidence of Plesiomonas shigelloides in ebute river, Okitipupa, Nigeria and their antibiogram fingerprints. Confirmed isolates were evaluated for their antibiogram profiles against a panel of 15 antibiotics using disc diffusion method and further screened for antibiotic resistant determinant. About 64 presumptive Plesiomonas shigelloides isolates was recovered from the river out of which 30 (46.9%) were confirmed positive using polymerase chain reaction techniques. Results showed that, 93% of the isolates were resistant against erythromycin and ceftazidime, 90%, 83%, 80%, 73%, 63%, 60%, 57% and 53% of the isolates exhibited resistance against cefotaxime and ampicillin, cephalothin, streptomycin, amoxicillin, tetracycline, Trimethoprim and chloramphenicol respectively. Similarly, resistance against the other antibiotics followed the order: Meropenem (33%), trimethoprim + sulphamethoxazole (27%) and Ciprofloxacin (23%) with others less than 20%. Ninety four percent of Plesiomonas shigelloides that exhibited resistant against tetracycline possesses tetA genes, 50% harboured tetE genes. About 67% of the isolates that showed resistant to ampicillin harboured ampC genes. Sixty three percent of the isolates that resisted the effect of chloramphenicol possessed cmlA1 while 43% harboured cat gene. dfr1 and dfr18 was examined in isolates that resisted the effect of sulfonamides, and 57% possessed dfr1 while 40% possessed dfr18. strA genes was also found in 42% of isolates that was resistant to streptomycin. This study concludes that ebute river is a reservoir of antibiotic-resistant enteric pathogen, and a potential public health threat.