Introduction: The emergence and spread of quinolone-resistant Escherichia coli in poultry products puts consumers at risk of exposure to the strains of E. coli that resist antibiotic treatment. The objective of this study was to define the prevalence and virulence potential of poultryassociated nalidixic acid (NAL)-resistant E. coli in the Annaba city, Algeria. Methodology: In total, 33 samples of retail chicken meat were purchased from various butcher shops and examined for bacterial contamination with NAL-resistant E. coli. These isolates were subjected to antimicrobial susceptibility testing and were also investigated for the presence of plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance (PMQR) genes and virulence genes using conventional polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and DNA sequencing. Phylogenetic grouping of the NAL-resistant E. coli isolates was determined by the conventional multiplex PCR method. Results: Twenty-nine (87.8%) products yielded NAL-resistant E. coli. Antibiograms revealed that 96.55% of NAL-resistant E. coli isolates were multidrug resistant (MDR). Resistance was most frequently observed against sulfamethoxazole-trimethoprim (96.6%), tetracycline (96.6%), ciprofloxacin (72%), and amoxicillin (65.5%). Group A was the most prevalent phylogenetic group, followed by groups D, B1, and B2. The PMQR determinants were detected in three isolates with qnrB72 and qnrS1 type identified. Four (13.8%) isolates carried one of the Shiga toxin E. coli-associated genes stx1, stx2, and ehxA alleles. Conclusions: The high prevalence of NAL-resistant E. coli isolated from retail chicken meat with detection of MDR E. coli harboring Shiga toxin genes in this study gives a warning signal for possible occurrence of foodborne infections with failure in antibiotic treatment.

Antimicrobial resistance, especially in Escherichia coli, represents one of the most important human and animal health-threatening issues worldwide. The aim of this study was the characterization and the comparison of Antimicro-bial drug resistance of Escherichia coli strains isolated from urinary tract in-fection (UTI) and food (raw beef meat) in Oum El Bouaghi city-Algeria. The determination of antibiotics susceptibility pattern was realized by using the agar disk diffusion method, according to the recommendations of the French Society for Microbiology (FSM, 2019). A total, 159 E. coli were obtained from both clinical and food samples, with a frequency of isolation of 100% from raw beef meat and 59% from UTI. ESBL phenotype was detected only in 17% of clinical isolates. Also, the results of this work reveal that there is a highly significant difference in antibiotic resistance between clinical and foodborne isolates except for gentamicin. This high prevalence is a warning sign to adopt new control policies to prevent the further spread of this antimicrobial resistance.

Introduction: Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a major public health concern. The spread of AMR-encoding genes between enterobacteria, especially in Klebsiella pneumoniae strains, lead to failure in the treatment of most individuals. The aim of this study was to characterize multi-drug resistant (MDR) clinical K. pneumoniae isolates that produce extended-spectrum β-lactamases (ESBLs) from Algeria. Methodology: The isolates were identified using biochemical tests, and the identification was confirmed by mass spectrometry using VITEK® MS (BioMerieux, Marcy l’Etoile, France). Antibiotic susceptibility testing was assessed by the disk diffusion method. Molecular characterization was performed by whole genome sequencing (WGS) using Illumina technology. Sequenced raw reads were processed using bioinformatics parameters: FastQC, ARIBA, and Shovill-Spades. Multilocus sequence typing (MLST) was used to estimate the evolutionary relationship between isolate strains. Results: Molecular analysis resulted in the first detection of blaNDM-5 encoding K. pneumoniae in Algeria. Other resistance genes were blaTEM, blaSHV, blaCTX-M, aac(6')-Ib-cr, qnrB1, qnrB4, qnrB19, qnrS1, gyrA and parC variants. Conclusions: Our data demonstrated a very high level of resistance in clinical K. pneumoniae strains which were resistant to most common antibiotic families. This was the first detection of K. pneumoniae with the blaNDM-5 gene in Algeria. Surveillance of antibiotic use and measures for control should be implemented to reduce occurrence of AMR in clinical bacteria.

Abstract. Rahmani A, Meradi L, Malawi K, Khanfouf F. 2021. Phenotypic characterization of antimicrobial drug resistance of Staphylococcus aureus and S. epidermidis strains isolated from various community infections in Oum El Bouaghi city, Algeria. Biodiversitas 22: 2665-2671. In Algeria most community infections caused by Staphylococcus epidermidis and Staphylococcus aureus present resistance to several antibiotics and induce therapeutic failures. The aim of this study is the characterization and the comparison of antimicrobial resistance of Staphylococcus strains isolated from community infection in Oum El Bouaghi city, Algeria. Species identification was realized by conventional biochemical tests and the determination of antibiotics susceptibility pattern was realized by using the agar disk diffusion method, according to the recommendations of the French Society for Microbiology (FSM, 2019). A total of 102 Staphylococci strains were obtained from clinical samples, with a frequency of isolation of 57,8% for S. epidermidis and 42,2% for S. aureus, both strains present a resistance for most used antibiotics, the higher resistance was found for oxacillin in both strains with 25,6% for S. aureus and 42,4% for S. epidermidis. Multidrug-Resistance (MDR) phenotype was detected in 37,3% of S. epidermidis and 14% in S. aureus strains. In Algeria, new control policies should be adopted to prevent the further spread of antimicrobial-resistant strains, especially in the community