Comparison of Antimicrobial Susceptibility Profiles of Thermotolerant <i>Campylobacter</i> spp. Isolated from Human and Poultry Samples in Georgia (Caucasus)
Maia Metreveli,
Salome Bulia,
Liana Tevzadze,
Shota Tsanava,
Michael Zarske,
Juan Cruz Goenaga,
Sandra Preuß,
Giorgi Lomidze,
Stylianos Koulouris,
Paata Imnadze,
Kerstin Stingl
Affiliations
Maia Metreveli
Faculty of Medicine, Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University, 0179 Tbilisi, Georgia
Salome Bulia
Department of Gastroenteric Infection Diseases, Tbilisi Children Infectious Diseases Clinical Hospital, 0171 Tbilisi, Georgia
Liana Tevzadze
National Center for Disease Control and Public Health, 0198 Tbilisi, Georgia
Shota Tsanava
National Center for Disease Control and Public Health, 0198 Tbilisi, Georgia
Michael Zarske
National Reference Laboratory for <i>Campylobacter</i>, Department of Biological Safety, German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, 12277 Berlin, Germany
Juan Cruz Goenaga
National Reference Laboratory for <i>Campylobacter</i>, Department of Biological Safety, German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, 12277 Berlin, Germany
Sandra Preuß
National Reference Laboratory for <i>Campylobacter</i>, Department of Biological Safety, German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, 12277 Berlin, Germany
Giorgi Lomidze
Faculty of Medicine, European University, 0189 Tbilisi, Georgia
Stylianos Koulouris
European Commission, Directorate General for Health and Food Safety (DG-SANTE), 1049 Brussels, Belgium
Paata Imnadze
Faculty of Medicine, Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University, 0179 Tbilisi, Georgia
Kerstin Stingl
National Reference Laboratory for <i>Campylobacter</i>, Department of Biological Safety, German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, 12277 Berlin, Germany
Antimicrobial resistance remains a public health concern globally. This study presents antimicrobial resistance by microdilution and genetic diversity by the whole-genome sequencing of Campylobacter spp. from human and poultry samples isolated in Georgia in 2020/2021. The major species in poultry samples was C. coli, while C. jejuni was preferentially isolated from human samples. Resistance against tetracycline was highest (100%) in C. coli from industrial chicken and lowest in C. jejuni from clinical isolates (36%), while resistance against ciprofloxacin varied from 80% in C. jejuni from backyard chicken to 100% in C. jejuni and C. coli from industrial chicken. The point mutations in gyrA (T86I) and tet (O) genes were detected as resistance determinants for (fluoro-)quinolone or tetracycline resistance, respectively. Ertapenem resistance is still enigmatic. All isolates displayed sensitivity towards erythromycin, gentamicin and chloramphenicol. Multi-resistance was more frequently observed in C. coli than in C. jejuni, irrespective of the isolation matrix, and in chicken isolates compared to human isolates, independent of the Campylobacter species. The Georgian strains showed high variability of multi-locus sequence types (ST), including novel STs. This study provides the first antibiotic resistance data from Campylobacter spp. in Georgia and addresses the need for follow-up monitoring programs.
