Water Sources in a Zoological Park Harbor Genetically Diverse Strains of Clostridium Perfringens Type A with Decreased Susceptibility to Metronidazole.
The presence of Clostridium perfringens in water is generally regarded as an indicator of fecal contamination, and exposure to waterborne spores is considered a possible source of infection for animals. We assessed the presence and genetic diversity of C. perfringens in water sources in a zoological park located in Madrid (Spain). A total of 48 water samples from 24 different sources were analyzed, and recovered isolates were toxinotyped, genotyped by fluorophore-enhanced repetitive polymerase chain reaction (rep-PCR) fingerprinting and tested for antimicrobial susceptibility. C. perfringens was recovered from 43.8 % of water samples and 50 % of water sources analyzed. All isolates (n = 70) were type A and 42.9 % were β2-toxigenic (i.e., cpb2+), but none contained the enterotoxin-encoding gene (cpe). Isolates belonged to 15 rep-PCR genotypes and most genetic diversity (88 %) was distributed among isolates obtained from the same sample. Most isolates displayed intermediate susceptibility (57.1 %; MIC = 16 μg ml-1) or resistance (5.7 %; MIC ≥ 32 μg ml-1) to metronidazole. No resistance to other antimicrobials was detected, although some isolates showed elevated MICs to erythromycin and/or linezolid. Finally, a marginally significant association between absence of cpb2 and decreased susceptibility to metronidazole (MIC ≥ 16 μg ml-1) was detected. In conclusion, our results reveal a high prevalence of C. perfringens type A in the studied water reservoirs, which constitutes a health risk for zoo animals. The elevated MICs to metronidazole observed for genetically diverse isolates is a cause of additional concern, but more work is required to clarify the significance of reduced metronidazole susceptibility in environmental strains.
['Álvarez-Pérez|Sergio|S|', 'Blanco|José L|JL|', 'Peláez|Teresa|T|', 'Martínez-Nevado|Eva|E|', 'García|Marta E|ME|']
D000818:Animals D000836:Animals, Zoo D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents D001427:Bacterial Toxins D003016:Clostridium perfringens D016172:DNA Fingerprinting D024881:Drug Resistance, Bacterial D005618:Fresh Water D008795:Metronidazole D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction D013030:Spain D014871:Water Microbiology
Water Zoological park Clostridium perfringens Metronidazole Rep-PCR typing Toxins