Abstract
We assessed the prevalence of isolates possessing extended-spectrum beta-lactamases (ESBLs) in community-acquired infections in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan and the contamination rate in retail chicken meat. ESBL-producing Escherichia coli and Proteus mirabilis strains were isolated from 5.6% of patients (13/196) and 50.0% of chicken meat (17/34). ESBL-producing E. coli was isolated from 13 chicken meat samples and ESBL-producing P. mirabilis was isolated from 8 samples. Four samples were contaminated with both bacteria. PCR analysis revealed that all ESBL-producing E. coli from patients possessed CTX-M-type ESBLs. Seven of 13 E. coli strains had CTX-M-type, 5 had SHV and 3 had TEM, and 1 of 8 P. mirabilis strains had CTX-M-type ESBLs, 1 had TEM, 1 had SHV, 1 had TEM and SHV. Another 4 strains were not identified. Results suggest that contamination of chicken meat with ESBL-producing Enterobacteriaceae would cause the dissemination of ESBL-producing strains at the community level.
