Poultry Ownership and Genetic Antibiotic Resistance Determinants in the Gut of Preschool Children

Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2021 Mar 22;104(5):1768-1770. doi: 10.4269/ajtmh.20-1384.

Abstract

Zoonotic transmission is likely a pathway for antibiotic resistance. Data from a randomized trial of pediatric antibiotic administration were secondarily evaluated to determine if poultry ownership was significantly associated with the presence of gut genetic antibiotic resistance determinants among 118 children in Burkina Faso. Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) determinants were classified using DNA sequencing. We measured the relationship between genetic resistance determinants and chicken ownership using a logistic regression model adjusted for confounding variables. Children in households reporting poultry ownership had four times the odds of tetracycline resistance determinants in the gut compared with those without household poultry (odds ratio [OR]: 4.08, 95% CI: 1.08-15.44, P = 0.04). There was no statistically significant difference found for other antibiotic classes. Understanding the origins of antibiotic resistance may help spur the development of interventions to combat the global AMR crisis.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Anti-Bacterial Agents / administration & dosage*
  • Anti-Bacterial Agents / classification
  • Burkina Faso
  • Child, Preschool
  • Drug Resistance, Microbial / genetics*
  • Family Characteristics*
  • Feces / microbiology
  • Female
  • Gastrointestinal Tract / drug effects*
  • Gastrointestinal Tract / microbiology
  • Humans
  • Infant
  • Male
  • Ownership*
  • Poultry / microbiology*
  • Tetracycline / administration & dosage
  • Tetracycline Resistance

Substances

  • Anti-Bacterial Agents
  • Tetracycline