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Botts RT, Page DM, Bravo JA, Brown ML, Castilleja CC, Guzman VL, Hall S, Henderson JD, Kenney SM, Lensink ME, Paternoster MV, Pyle SL, Ustick L, Walters-Laird CJ, Top EM, Cummings DE. Polluted wetlands contain multidrug-resistance plasmids encoding CTX-M-type extended-spectrum β-lactamases. Plasmid 2023; 126:102682. [PMID: 37023995 PMCID: PMC10213127 DOI: 10.1016/j.plasmid.2023.102682] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2022] [Revised: 03/27/2023] [Accepted: 03/27/2023] [Indexed: 04/08/2023]
Abstract
While most detailed analyses of antibiotic resistance plasmids focus on those found in clinical isolates, less is known about the vast environmental reservoir of mobile genetic elements and the resistance and virulence factors they encode. We selectively isolated three strains of cefotaxime-resistant Escherichia coli from a wastewater-impacted coastal wetland. The cefotaxime-resistant phenotype was transmissible to a lab strain of E. coli after one hour, with frequencies as high as 10-3 transconjugants per recipient. Two of the plasmids also transferred cefotaxime resistance to Pseudomonas putida, but these were unable to back-transfer this resistance from P. putida to E. coli. In addition to the cephalosporins, E. coli transconjugants inherited resistance to at least seven distinct classes of antibiotics. Complete nucleotide sequences revealed large IncF-type plasmids with globally distributed replicon sequence types F31:A4:B1 and F18:B1:C4 carrying diverse antibiotic resistance and virulence genes. The plasmids encoded extended-spectrum β-lactamases blaCTX-M-15 or blaCTX-M-55, each associated with the insertion sequence ISEc9, although in different local arrangements. Despite similar resistance profiles, the plasmids shared only one resistance gene in common, the aminoglycoside acetyltransferase aac(3)-IIe. Plasmid accessory cargo also included virulence factors involved in iron acquisition and defense against host immunity. Despite their sequence similarities, several large-scale recombination events were detected, including rearrangements and inversions. In conclusion, selection with a single antibiotic, cefotaxime, yielded conjugative plasmids conferring multiple resistance and virulence factors. Clearly, efforts to limit the spread of antibiotic resistance and virulence among bacteria must include a greater understanding of mobile elements in the natural and human-impacted environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryan T Botts
- Department of Mathematics, Information, and Computer Sciences, Point Loma Nazarene University, 3900 Lomaland Dr., San Diego, CA 92106, United States of America
| | - Dawne M Page
- Department of Biology, Point Loma Nazarene University, 3900 Lomaland Dr., San Diego, CA 92106, United States of America
| | - Joseph A Bravo
- Department of Biology, Point Loma Nazarene University, 3900 Lomaland Dr., San Diego, CA 92106, United States of America
| | - Madelaine L Brown
- Department of Biology, Point Loma Nazarene University, 3900 Lomaland Dr., San Diego, CA 92106, United States of America
| | - Claudia C Castilleja
- Department of Biology, Point Loma Nazarene University, 3900 Lomaland Dr., San Diego, CA 92106, United States of America
| | - Victoria L Guzman
- Department of Biology, Point Loma Nazarene University, 3900 Lomaland Dr., San Diego, CA 92106, United States of America
| | - Samantha Hall
- Department of Biology, Point Loma Nazarene University, 3900 Lomaland Dr., San Diego, CA 92106, United States of America
| | - Jacob D Henderson
- Department of Biology, Point Loma Nazarene University, 3900 Lomaland Dr., San Diego, CA 92106, United States of America
| | - Shelby M Kenney
- Department of Biology, Point Loma Nazarene University, 3900 Lomaland Dr., San Diego, CA 92106, United States of America
| | - Mariele E Lensink
- Department of Biology, Point Loma Nazarene University, 3900 Lomaland Dr., San Diego, CA 92106, United States of America
| | - Megan V Paternoster
- Department of Biology, Point Loma Nazarene University, 3900 Lomaland Dr., San Diego, CA 92106, United States of America
| | - Sarah L Pyle
- Department of Biology, Point Loma Nazarene University, 3900 Lomaland Dr., San Diego, CA 92106, United States of America
| | - Lucas Ustick
- Department of Mathematics, Information, and Computer Sciences, Point Loma Nazarene University, 3900 Lomaland Dr., San Diego, CA 92106, United States of America; Department of Biology, Point Loma Nazarene University, 3900 Lomaland Dr., San Diego, CA 92106, United States of America
| | - Chara J Walters-Laird
- Department of Biology, Point Loma Nazarene University, 3900 Lomaland Dr., San Diego, CA 92106, United States of America
| | - Eva M Top
- Department of Biological Sciences, Institute for Interdisciplinary Data Sciences (IIDS), University of Idaho, 875 Perimeter Dr., Moscow, ID 83844, United States of America
| | - David E Cummings
- Department of Biology, Point Loma Nazarene University, 3900 Lomaland Dr., San Diego, CA 92106, United States of America.
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