Research paperMolecular signature of extended spectrum β-lactamase producing Klebsiella pneumoniae isolated from bovine milk in eastern and north-eastern India

- We report multi-drug resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae in bovine milk.
- The isolates were ESBL & ACBL producers & mostly carried ISEcp1-blaCTX-M-orf477.
- Class I integron carried dfrA12/dfrA17 and aadA2/aadA5 gene cassettes.
- Isolation rate was significantly higher in mastitic bovine milk.
- Emergence of such pathogen may be disastrous for herd economy and public health.

SummaryThe present study reports on 23 extended spectrum β-lactamase producing Klebsiella pneumoniae (KP), isolated from milk samples (n = 340) of healthy cows (n = 129) and cows with subclinical (n = 159) and clinical (n = 52) mastitis, from three different states of India viz. West Bengal, Jharkhand and Mizoram. Seven of them were AmpC type β-lactamase producers, as well. The ESBL producing KP were significantly (P = 0.006, χ2 = 10.04, df = 2) and more frequently detected in milk samples of mastitic cows than healthy ones. The β-lactamase genes - blaCTX-M, blaTEM and blaSHV were detected in 19, 8 and 3 isolates, respectively. In all but one CTX-M positive isolates, the genetic platform - ISEcp1-blaCTX-M-orf477 was detected. Ten of the isolates carried plasmid mediated quinolone resistance gene - qnrS and 1 isolate possessed qnrB. Again 11 of them were found to have sulfonamide resistance gene - sul1 and 12 possessed class I integron. Sequencing of the class 1 integron revealed the presence of dfrA12/dfrA17 and aadA2/aadA5 gene cassettes conferring resistance to trimethoprim and aminoglycosides, respectively. All the isolates, characterized by enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus (ERIC) PCR, yielded distinct fingerprinting profile. However, most of the isolates from Jharkhand were clustered along with two isolates each from West Bengal and Mizoram indicating their clonal relatedness even though isolated from geographically different areas. Isolation of ESBL producing KP from bovine milk samples implies its public health significance; as such pathogens may enter the human food chain causing severe health hazards.