Determination of Virulence Factors and Antibiotic Resistance with Specia Emphasis on Extended Spectrum β Lactamase Producing Escherichia coli from Sheep and Goats in Jammu, India

The present study was aimed at investigating the pathogenic strains of Escherichia coli in sheep and goats and their antibiotic resistance patterns with special emphasis on extended spectrum beta lactamases producing E. coli.A total of 200 presumptive E. coli isolates were obtained from 120 faecal samples of sheep and goats.Out of these 200 isolates, 62 isolates showed the presence of at least one virulence gene studied.Among these, 10 isolates carried eaeA gene either alone or in combination with ehxA and were categorized as EPEC.44 isolates carried stx genes and were categorized as STEC, 08 isolates carried ehxA genes and were designated as EHEC.All 62 isolates showing the presence of at least one virulence gene were further screened for ESBL production by using primers specific for bla TEM , bla CTX-M , bla SHV and bla OXA genes.Out of 62 isolates, only 22 were tested positive for presence of ESBL genes.Further, the prevalence of bla TEM , bla CTX-M and bla SHV genes was found to be 54.54%,27.27% and 36.36%respectively.Antibiotic sensitivity profiling of the isolates positive for virulence genes revealed that all isolates were resistant to cefotaxime. HIGHLIGHTS mThe most abundant ESBLs type in Sheep and Goat of Jammu region is bla TEM gene.m Antibiotic sensitivity profiling shows highest resistance against cefotaxime.