Abstract:
This study was undertaken to evaluate the antibiogram fingerprints of some Enterobacteria
recovered from irrigation water and agricultural soil in two District Municipalities of the Eastern Cape
Province, South Africa using standard culture-based and molecular methods. The prevalent resistance
patterns in the isolates follow the order: Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium [tetracycline
(92.3%), ampicillin (69.2%)]; Enterobacter cloacae [amoxicillin/clavulanic acid (77.6%), ampicillin
(84.5%), cefuroxime (81.0%), nitrofurantoin (81%), and tetracycline (80.3%)]; Klebsiella pneumoniae
[amoxicillin/clavulanic acid (80.6%), ampicillin (88.9%), and cefuroxime (61.1%)]; and Klebsiella oxytoca
[chloramphenicol (52.4%), amoxicillin/clavulanic acid (61.9%), ampicillin (61.9%), and nitrofurantoin
(61.9%)]. Antibiotic resistance genes detected include tetC (86%), sulII (86%), and blaAmpC (29%) in
Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium., tetA (23%), tetB (23%), tetC (12%), sulI (54%), sulII (54%),
catII (71%), blaAmpC (86%), blaTEM (43%), and blaPER (17%) in Enterobacter cloacae., tetA(20%), tetC (20%),
tetD(10%), sulI (9%), sulII (18%), FOX (11%) and CIT (11%)-type plasmid-mediated AmpC, blaTEM (11%),
and blaSHV (5%) in Klebsiella pneumoniae and blaAmpC (18%) in Klebsiella oxytoca. Our findings document
the occurrence of some antibiotic-resistant Enterobacteria in irrigation water and agricultural soil in
Amathole and Chris Hani District Municipalities, Eastern Cape Province of South Africa, thus serving
as a potential threat to food safety.
Description:
Table S1: Description of sampling points, Table S2: Primer sequence and PCR cycling conditions used for the
molecular detection of members of Enterobacteriales, Table S3: The primer sequence and expected amplicon size
used for the screening of resistance genes in members of Enterobacteriales, Table S4: The primer sequence and
expected amplicon size used for the screening of AmpC -lactamase and ESBLs in members of Enterobacteriales [44].