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Advisor(s)
Abstract(s)
Background: Wildlife has been recently recognized as an environmental reservoir for
antimicrobial resistance (AMR). However, less information on this topic is available
in animals released back into the wild after rehabilitation in wildlife facilities,
compared with studies performed exclusively in captive or free-ranging wildlife.
This study aimed to evaluate the potential influence of captivity and/or treatment
while in captivity of wild sloths on the AMR and virulence profiles of sloths’
Enterobacterales.
Methods: Oral and rectal swab samples were collected from 39 two-finger (Choloepus
hoffmanni) and three-finger sloths (Bradypus variegatus) of Costa Rica (n = 78) and
analyzed using conventional bacteriological techniques. A generalized linear mixed
model was applied to estimate the isolates’ multiple antimicrobial resistance and
virulence indices as a function of animal status.
Results: A considerable level of resistance was detected, especially for Citrobacter
youngae and Escherichia coli, with 17.5% of isolates classified as multidrug-resistant.
Virulence indices of isolates from rehabilitated sloths were significantly higher than
the ones from sloths being hand-reared for shorter periods.
Conclusions: To our knowledge, this is the first description of sloths’ antimicrobial
resistant Enterobacterales, suggesting that sloths’ rehabilitation and consequent
exposure to humans, may promote the selection of bacteria with higher virulence.
Ultimately, these bacteria may represent a threat to human and animal health due to
their zoonotic potential and AMR and virulence profiles.
Description
Research Areas: Science & Technology ; Other Topics
Keywords
Antimicrobial resistance Bacterial virulence factors Wildlife bacteria One health Choloepus hoffmanni Bradypus variegatus
Pedagogical Context
Citation
Fernandes M, Nóbrega Carneiro C, Villada Rosales AM, Grilo M, Ramiro Y, Cunha E, Nunes T, Tavares L, Sandi J, Oliveira M. 2022. Antimicrobial resistance and virulence profiles of Enterobacterales isolated from two-finger and three-finger sloths (Choloepus hoffmanni and Bradypus variegatus) of Costa Rica. PeerJ, 10:e12911. Doi 10.7717/peerj.12911
Publisher
PEERJ INC