Abstract

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Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a current health menace that strikes at the core of infectious disease control, and has potential to affect every aspect of healthcare systems, as well as impact the food chain in terms of the evolution and transmission of antibiotic-resistant bacteria of public health risk. This study investigated antimicrobial drug resistance in strains of Salmonella spp. isolated from pig effluents in Abakaliki, Nigeria. Standard microbiology techniques including microscopy, biochemical testing and culture on Salmonella-Shigella agar (SSA) was used for the isolation of forty strains of Salmonella species from the pig-effluent-samples. Antibiogram studies were conducted by modified disk diffusion technique; and multiple antibiotic resistance index (MARI) was determined. Our results shows that resistance of Salmonella spp. to beta-lactam agents was most common, including amoxicillin (97.5%), oxacillin (100%), vancomycin (100%) and penicillin (95%). The Salmonella spp. was highly resistant to chloramphenicol (90%); and the strains exhibited multiple resistances to at least 3 antibiotic classes. This preliminary study has shown that Salmonella spp. of pig origin is highly resistant to some first- and second-line antibiotics used in clinical medicine. Our next step is to use genomics to characterize the genes responsible for multiple antibiotic resistances in the Salmonella spp. Since AMR increasingly threaten human health, it is important to detect and report drug resistance to guide therapy. We recommend alternative approaches that eliminate antibiotic use in livestock

Keywords: Multidrug Resistance, One Health, Livestock, Salmonella