Antimicrobial resistance (AMR), especially the simultaneous resistance to several antibiotics (multidrug resistance [MDR]), is one of the greatest threats to global public health in the 21st century. Among animals, chickens, pigs, and cattle are reservoirs of these pathogens worldwide.

A quality detection system for the “Red Fuji” apple in Luochuan was designed for automatic grading. According to the Chinese national standard, the grading principles of apple appearance quality and Brix detection were determined. Based on machine vision and image processing, the classifier models of apple defect, contour, and size were constructed. And then, the grading thresholds were set to detect the defective pixel ratio t, aspect ratio λ, and the cross-sectional diameter Wp in the image of the apple. Spectral information of apples in the wavelength range of 400 nm~1000 nm was collected and the multiple scattering correction (MSC) and standard normal variable (SNV) transformation methods were used to preprocess spectral reflectance data. The competitive adaptive reweighted sampling (CARS) algorithm and the successive projections algorithm (SPA) were used to extract characteristic wavelength points containing Brix information, and the CARS-PLS (partial least squares) algorithm was used to establish a Brix prediction model. Apple defect, contour, size, and Brix were combined as grading indicators. The apple quality online grading detection platform was built, and apple’s comprehensive grading detection algorithm and upper computer software were designed. The experiments showed that the average accuracy of apple defect, contour, and size grading detection was 96.67%, 95.00%, and 94.67% respectively, and the correlation coefficient Rp of the Brix prediction set was 0.9469. The total accuracy of apple defect, contour, size, and Brix grading was 96.67%, indicating that the detection system designed in this paper is feasible to classify “Red Fuji” apple in Luochuan.

The worldwide spread of pathogenic Escherichia coli, together with the multidrug resistant linked with extended‐spectrum β‐lactamases (blaCTX‐M, blaTEM and blaOXA), not only affect the health of animals and humans but also bring huge economic losses to animal husbandry. Despite the high levels of virulence present in many extended‐spectrum beta‐lactamases (ESBLs)‐producing E. coli isolates, however, few studies have comprehensively assessed the pathogenicity of ESBLs‐producing E. coli isolates. Thus, the aim of the present study was to investigate the presence of virulence genes in third‐generation cephalosporin–resistant E. coli and to assess their pathogenicity and zoonotic potential. Previously, we identified 67 ESBLs‐producing E. coli strains from sheep anal swabs in northwest China. In this study, we genotypically and phenotypically characterized isolates of E. coli that produce ESBLs. According to the VirulenceFinder and virulence factors database, all ESBLs‐producing E. coli strains harboured a wide range of virulence genes. The ColV plasmid‐related genes (hlyF, ompT, iss, iutA and cvaC) were present in 52 (77.6%) ESBLs‐producing E. coli isolates. Surprisingly, quite a number of extraintestinal pathogenic E. coli virulence‐related genes were detected in 62 (92.5%) of 67 isolates. A total of 33 serotypes and 37 sequence types (STs) were found in 67 ESBLs‐producing isolates. ST10 is the most prevalent ST, which is represented by five strains. The cluster analysis showed that CC10 and CC23 were the common clonal complexes (CCs). Predominant serotypes were O8 (10%) and O9 (9%) followed by 6% each of O89, O101 and O185. Most sheep‐origin ESBLs‐producing E. coli held the highly pathogenic to human and displayed moderate‐to‐vigorous‐intensity motor capacity. The ESBLs‐producing E. coli isolates with numerous virulence‐related genes were able to cause multiple infectious diseases in animal models (mice, neonatal rats and Galleria mellonella). To our knowledge, this study represents an important first step for a comprehensive characterization of pathogenicity and zoonotic potential of sheep‐origin ESBLs‐producing E. coli isolates. These findings may be of significant value for the identification of pathogenicity and zoonotic potential risks associated with sheep‐origin ESBLs‐producing E. coli.