Antimicrobial resistance of Campylobacter spp. isolated from broiler flocks in Iceland 2001-2005.

• Published in: Microbial Drug Resistance
• Main Authors: Thorsteinsdottir, Thorunn R, Kristinsson, Karl G, Fridriksdottir, Vala, Gunnarsson, Eggert
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Mary Ann Liebert 2008
• Subjects: Drug Resistance; Bacterial; Anti-Bacterial Agents; Campylobacter jejuni; Poultry; Iceland
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/2336/29655; https://doi.org/10.1089/mdr.2008.0791

To access publisher full text version of this article. Please click on the hyperlink in Additional Links field Minimum inhibitory concentrations of six antimicrobial agents were determined for one Campylobacter sp. isolate from each of the 362 Campylobacter-positive commercial chicken flocks in Iceland in the years 2001-2005. Of all isolates tested, 6.9% were resistant, although none were multiresistant. Resistance to ampicillin was most commonly observed (3.6%) followed by resistance to enrofloxacin (3%), nalidixic acid (1.9%), and oxytetracyclin (0.3%), with cross-resistance between enrofloxacin and nalidixic acid. All isolates were susceptible to erythromycin and gentamicin. Resistance rates among Campylobacter coli isolates (7/13 or 53.8%) were much higher than among Campylobacter jejuni isolates (18/349 or 5.2%), and resistance patterns differed. Resistant strains were compared using pulsed field gel electrophoresis. Macrorestriction with SmaI and KpnI restriction enzymes yielded 13 different pulsotypes, none of which indicated a predominant genotype. Specific pulsotypes with uniform resistance patterns arising on geographically separated farms indicate clonal dissemination. Although resistance levels were low and similar to that seen in the other Nordic countries, further research on this matter is needed as there is no antimicrobial selective pressure in chicken farming in Iceland.