Abstract

Akinlabi O. Ogunleye and Steve A. Carlson

 Occurrence and spread of Salmonella genes encoding AmpC and extended-spectrum beta-lactamases (ESBL) is a major public health problem worldwide. These genes have been identified in Salmonella serotypes all over the world yet there is paucity of reports on these genes in Nigeria, despite the phenotypic evidence of resistance to beta- lactam drugs. The current work used a multiplex PCR to identify beta-lactam resistance genes in five Nigerian-origin Salmonella isolates exhibiting resistance to third-generation cephalosporins. The isolates included four strains isolated from septic poultry (two strains of Salmonella enterica serotype Kentucky and two strains of presumptive S. enterica serotype Pullorum) and one S. enterica serotype Give isolated from one of two hundred asymptomatic pigs. The predominant genes found in these Nigeria serotypes include: TEM, SHV, GES, OXA-2, ACCM, FOX, ECBM and DHAM. The presence of these plasmid-borne genes underscores the potential health risk of antibiotic resistance transfer from food animals to human in Nigeria because third-generation cephalosporin drugs are still the drug of choice in treating life-threatening systemic infections in Nigeria.