Genetic Diversity and Resistome Analysis of <i>Campylobacter lari</i> Isolated from Gulls in Croatia
Luka Jurinović,
Sanja Duvnjak,
Andrea Humski,
Biljana Ječmenica,
Louie Thomas Taylor,
Borka Šimpraga,
Fani Krstulović,
Tajana Amšel Zelenika,
Gordan Kompes
Affiliations
Luka Jurinović
Laboratory for Bacteriology, Croatian Veterinary Institute, Poultry Centre, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Sanja Duvnjak
Laboratory for Bacterial Zoonoses and Molecular Diagnostics of Bacterial Diseases, Department for Bacteriology and Parasitology, Croatian Veterinary Institute, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Andrea Humski
Laboratory for Food Microbiology, Department for Veterinary Public Health, Croatian Veterinary Institute, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Biljana Ječmenica
Laboratory for Bacteriology, Croatian Veterinary Institute, Poultry Centre, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Louie Thomas Taylor
Assocciation BIOM, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Borka Šimpraga
Laboratory for Bacteriology, Croatian Veterinary Institute, Poultry Centre, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Fani Krstulović
Laboratory for Bacteriology, Croatian Veterinary Institute, Poultry Centre, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Tajana Amšel Zelenika
Laboratory for Bacteriology, Croatian Veterinary Institute, Poultry Centre, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Gordan Kompes
Laboratory for General Bacteriology and Mycology, Department for Bacteriology and Parasitology, Croatian Veterinary Institute, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Campylobacter lari is a thermotolerant bacterium that sporadically causes gastrointestinal diseases in humans and can be found in wildlife and the environment. C. lari is an understudied species, especially in wild birds such as gulls. Gulls are potentially good carriers of pathogens due to their opportunistic behavior and tendency to gather in large flocks. During winter and their breeding period, 1753 gulls were captured, and cloacal swabs were taken to be tested for the presence of C. lari. From isolated bacteria, the DNA was sequenced, and sequence types (ST) were determined. Sixty-four swabs were positive for C. lari, and from those, forty-three different STs were determined, of which thirty-one were newly described. The whole genome was sequenced for 43 random isolates, and the same isolates were tested for antimicrobial susceptibility using the broth microdilution method to compare them to WGS-derived antimicrobial-resistant isolates. All the tested strains were susceptible to erythromycin, gentamicin, and chloramphenicol, and all were resistant to ciprofloxacin. Resistance to ciprofloxacin was attributed to a gyrA_2 T86V mutation. Genes connected to possible beta-lactam resistance (blaOXA genes) were also detected.
