DETECTION OF ANTIMICROBIAL RESISTANCE OF LISTERIA MONOCYTOGENES ISOLATED FROM ABORTED COWS IN IRAQ

Listeria spp. is one of the abortion causative agents in animals, especially in ruminants. This work aimed to detect Listeria spp. in milk and aborted fetus cows in Iraq. A total of 50 organ samples from aborted cow fetuses, including (brain, liver, and spleen), and 50 milk samples from the same aborted cows were collected from Baghdad farms, Iraq from (October 2023-March 2024). The bacteria were identified by conventional culture methods, biochemical tests, and the VITEK2 compact system, followed by molecular confirmation. The antimicrobial resistance pattern assay was performed using the disc diffusion method against eight antibiotic agents, and the L.monocytogenes virulence genes involving prfA,actA, and hylA genes were detected using the PCR. The results revealed that only L. monocytogenes was detected at 2/50(4%) from aborted fetuses isolated from the brain and liver, while not in milk samples. The L.monocytogenes showed 100% resistance against erythromycin, ampicillin, cotrimoxazole, chloramphenicol, vancomycin, and tetracycline. At the same time, all the isolates had a high MDR and MAR (Multiple Antibiotic Resistance) index. This study concluded that L.monocytogenes is one of the abortion causative agents in cattle in Iraq, and the high antibiotic resistance of Listeria leads to economic loss and a possible risk to humans.