Abstract
From 194 faecal dropping samples of common house geckos collected from offices (60), houses (88), integrated farm units (IFS,18) and hostels, guest houses, and dining rooms of different canteen/mess (HGM, 28), 326 bacterial isolates of enteric bacteria belonging to 17 genera and 34 species were detected. Escherichia coli were the most frequently (39) isolated followed by Citrobacter freundii (33), Klebsiella pneumonia (27), Salmonella indica (12), Enterobacter gergoviae (12), and Ent. agglomerans (11). Other important bacteria isolated from gecko droppings were Listonella damsela (2), Raoultella terrigena (3), S. salamae (2), S. houtenae (3), Edwardsiella tarda (4), Edwardsiella hoshinae (1), and Klebsiella oxytoca (2). Of the 223 isolates tested for antimicrobial drug sensitivity, 27 (12.1%) had multiple drug resistance (MDR). None of the salmonellae or edwardsiellae had MDR however, MDR strains were significantly more common among Escherichia spp. (P = 1.9 × 10−5) and isolates from IFS units (P = 3.58 × 10−23). The most effective herbal drug, Ageratum conyzoides extract, inhibited growth of only 27.8% of strains tested followed by ethanolic extract of Zanthoxylum rhetsa (13.9%), eucalyptus oil (5.4%), patchouli oil (5.4%), lemongrass oil (3.6%), and sandalwood oil (3.1%), and Artemisia vulgaris essential oil (3.1%).
Highlights
In most parts of the world house wall lizards are common.In the Jharnapani area, common house gecko (Hemidactylus frenatus) is found everywhere in houses, in animal sheds, in offices, and so forth
From 194 faecal dropping samples of common house geckos collected from different places, 326 bacterial isolates were identified as belonging to 17 genera and 34 species (Table 1)
It is widely accepted that potentially enteropathogenic and zoonotically important bacteria may be present in intestine of geckos, and the geckos have been seen as potential threat in spread of enteric diseases [1
Summary
In most parts of the world house wall lizards are common. In the Jharnapani area, common house gecko (Hemidactylus frenatus) is found everywhere in houses, in animal sheds, in offices, and so forth. Geckos are often reported as carriers of many zoonotic enteropathogens including nontyphoidal salmonellae [1,2,3,4,5], Citrobacter freundii, C. Researchers have suspected that lizards have a role as reservoirs in spread and emergence of drug resistant bacteria [2, 4, 5]. Most of the studies on enteropathogens of public health significance in lizards have been conducted through collecting lizards, euthanizing them, and collecting their intestinal contents, determining the presence of bacteria
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