PSVII-13 Amplicon-Based Sequencing of Antimicrobial Resistance Gene Variants in Beef Cattle

Abstract

Abstract While antimicrobial therapies have conferred immense benefits in both animal and human health, agricultural use of antibiotics has largely contributed to antimicrobial resistance, affecting both agricultural and nonagricultural use. It is estimated that approximately 40% of all antibiotics produced are used in livestock as feed additives. Current explorations of Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) genes and their abundance have utilized real-time or conventional PCR-based analyses of AMR genes. However, such approaches fail to identify variants within AMR genes and whether certain variants are transmitted faster or are fixed in a given environment. As such, to identify AMR gene diversity within most abundant AMR genes, we have developed and utilized an amplicon-based sequencing strategy to evaluate AMR genes and their hosts. Such AMR gene variants can be correlated with 16S rDNA-based community profiling to understand what bacterial species may be associated with different AMR gene variants, as well as to identify functional variants of the AMR genes that show resistance. This sequence-based AMR gene analysis approach provides information into the diversity and ecology of AMR genes.