Assessing the role of livestock and sympatric wild ruminants in spreading antimicrobial resistant Campylobacter and Salmonella in alpine ecosystems

Johan Espunyes,Marta Cerdà-Cuéllar,Pol Miralles,Oscar Cabezón,Andrea Dias-Alves,Teresa Ayats

doi:10.1186/s12917-021-02784-2

Johan Espunyes, Marta Cerdà-Cuéllar + Show 4 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1186/s12917-021-02784-2

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Abstract

BackgroundLivestock play an important role as reservoir of enteric pathogens and antimicrobial resistance (AMR), a health and economic concern worldwide. However, little is known regarding the transmission and maintenance of these pathogens at the wildlife-livestock interface. In this study, we assessed the occurrence, genetic diversity and AMR of Campylobacter spp. and Salmonella spp. shed by sympatric free-ranging livestock and a wild herbivore in an alpine ecosystem.ResultsCampylobacter spp. was isolated from 23.3 % of cattle and 7.7 % of sheep but was not isolated from horses nor Pyrenean chamois (Rupicapra pyrenaica). Campylobacter jejuni was the most frequent species. A high genetic diversity and certain host specificity of C. jejuni isolates was observed. The main AMR detected in Campylobacter isolates was to nalidixic acid (88.2 %), ciprofloxacin (82.4 %) and tetracycline (82.4 %); only 11.7 % of the isolates were pan-susceptible and 17.6 % were multi-resistant. Salmonella ser. Newport was isolated only from one Pyrenean chamois and was pan-susceptible.ConclusionsResults show that free-ranging cattle and sheep are spreaders of Campylobacter as well as their AMR strains in the alpine environment. Therefore, contaminated alpine pastures or streams may constitute a source for the dissemination of AMR enteropathogens. However, apparently, alpine wild ungulates such as Pyrenean chamois play a negligible role in the epidemiology of zoonotic enteropathogens and AMR, and are not potential bioindicators of the burden of alpine environments.

Highlights

Livestock play an important role as reservoir of enteric pathogens and antimicrobial resistance (AMR), a health and economic concern worldwide
We isolated Campylobacter spp. from 17 cattle (23.3 %; CI95 %: 15.1–34.1) and 3 sheep (7.7 %; CI95 %: 2.6–20.3), whilst Salmonella was isolated from only one Pyrenean chamois (1.2 %; CI95 %: 0.2–6.3) (Table 1)
We isolated Salmonella from only one Pyrenean chamois and all Salmonella isolates from this positive individual showed the same ERIC-PCR profile and were identified as Salmonella ser

Summary

Introduction

Livestock play an important role as reservoir of enteric pathogens and antimicrobial resistance (AMR), a health and economic concern worldwide. We assessed the occurrence, genetic diversity and AMR of Campylobacter spp. and Salmonella spp. shed by sympatric free-ranging livestock and a wild herbivore in an alpine ecosystem. Gastrointestinal foodborne infections are challenging issues for humanity They cause an estimated number of 600 million illnesses and 420,000 deaths worldwide every year [1]. Livestock act as carriers of these enteric pathogens and they play an important role in their dissemination, in farm environments [5, 6]. The role of wildlife in the ecology of Campylobacter and Salmonella is poorly understood, mostly due to the unknown carrier status of many wild species. The wildlife compartment is considered a “net sink” of enteric pathogens due to a contamination from domestic species or human waste [12, 13]. Transmission may be bidirectional [14], but at the same time some wild species are independent from this transmission cycle due to ecological and behavioural differentiations [15]

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