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Applied and Environmental Microbiology, February 2004, p. 752-757, Vol. 70, No. 2
0099-2240/04/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/AEM.70.2.752-757.2004
Copyright © 2004, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Role of Calf-Adapted Escherichia coli in Maintenance of Antimicrobial Drug Resistance in Dairy Calves

Artashes R. Khachatryan,1 Dale D. Hancock,2 Thomas E. Besser,1 and Douglas R. Call1*

Department of Veterinary Microbiology and Pathology,1 Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington 991642

Received 18 June 2003/ Accepted 29 October 2003

The prevalence of antimicrobial drug-resistant bacteria is typically highest in younger animals, and prevalence is not necessarily related to recent use of antimicrobial drugs. In dairy cattle, we hypothesize that antimicrobial drug-resistant, neonate-adapted bacteria are responsible for the observed high frequencies of resistant Escherichia coli in calves. To explore this issue, we examined the age distribution of antimicrobial drug-resistant E. coli from Holstein cattle at a local dairy and conducted an experiment to determine if low doses of oxytetracycline affected the prevalence of antimicrobial drug-resistant E. coli. Isolates resistant to tetracycline (>4 µg/ml) were more prevalent in <3-month-old calves (79%) compared with lactating cows (14%). In an experimental trial where calves received diets supplemented with or without oxytetracycline, the prevalence of tetracycline-resistant E. coli was slightly higher for the latter group (P = 0.039), indicating that drug use was not required to maintain a high prevalence of resistant E. coli. The most common resistance pattern among calf E. coli isolates included resistance to streptomycin (>12 µg/ml), sulfadiazine (>512 µg/ml), and tetracycline (>4 µg/ml) (SSuT), and this resistance pattern was most prevalent during the period when calves were on milk diets. To determine if prevalence was a function of differential fitness, we orally inoculated animals with nalidixic acid-resistant strains of SSuT E. coli and susceptible E. coli. Shedding of SSuT E. coli was significantly greater than that of susceptible strains in neonatal calves (P < 0.001), whereas there was no difference in older animals (P = 0.5). These data support the hypothesis that active selection for traits linked to the SSuT phenotype are responsible for maintaining drug-resistant E. coli in this population of dairy calves.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Dept. of Veterinary Microbiology and Pathology, 402 Bustad Hall, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-7040. Phone: (509) 335-6313. Fax: (509) 335-8529. E-mail: drcall{at}wsu.edu.

Applied and Environmental Microbiology, February 2004, p. 752-757, Vol. 70, No. 2
0099-2240/04/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/AEM.70.2.752-757.2004
Copyright © 2004, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



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