Abstract
The objective of this study was to determine antibiotic resistance patterns and specific resistance genes in Gram-negative enteric bacteria recovered from 42 different drinking water sources servicing 2 rural villages in south-western Uganda. These water sites were prone to contamination by both human and cattle activity. Of the 52 isolates examined, 26 carried antibiotic resistance genes with 25 being ampicillin resistant, 21 carrying the blaTEM gene, and no isolate carrying genes coding for extended-spectrum â.lactamases. Twelve isolates were tetracycline resistant and these bacteria carried between 1 and 3 different tet genes, with the tet(A) gene the most common. Six isolates carried the macrolide resistance mef(A) and/or the macrolide-lincosamide-streptogramin B resistance erm(B) genes. Four isolates carried the sul1 gene, and 4 isolates carried the sul1 and int1 genes indicating the presence of Class 1 integrons. The Ugandan isolates in this study had lower than expected carriage rates of antibiotic and multi-drug resistance genes, carriage of Class 1 integrons and lacked genes coding for extended-spectrum â.lactamases as compared to antibiotic resistance carriage in clinical African isolates.
Highlights
Pearson et al (2008) reported on the isolation and biochemical characterisation of water-borne Gram-negative bacteria isolated from boreholes, ponds and valley water tanks used by 2 rural villages, from Nyabushozi County in the Mbarara District of south-western Uganda
Water-borne Gram-negative bacteria were recovered from 1 ml water samples taken from 47 water sites within 2 villages in Nyabushozi County in the Mbarara District of south-western Uganda
All transconjugants were ampicillin and tetracycline resistant; 58 kb, 65 kb and 75 kb plasmids transferred in E. coli 304, E. coli 302, and E. coli 387 respectively
Summary
Pearson et al (2008) reported on the isolation and biochemical characterisation of water-borne Gram-negative bacteria isolated from boreholes, ponds and valley water tanks used by 2 rural villages, from Nyabushozi County in the Mbarara District of south-western Uganda Both humans and animals used the water sources and the E. coli counts confirmed that 38 of the 42 water sites did not meet international drinking water standards. The villagers were 10 to 15 km from the nearest local private medical clinic, which charged money for its services and 40 to 50 km from the nearest hospital These communities lacked the infrastructure required for basic services, such as health care and a municipal drinking water supply. These people had little interaction with western medicine and relied on traditional herbal treatments for human and livestock diseases (authors’ unpublished observations)
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