Bacteria richness and antibiotic-resistance in bats from a protected area in the Atlantic Forest of Southeastern Brazil

Abstract

Bats play key ecological roles, also hosting many zoonotic pathogens. Neotropical bat microbiota is still poorly known. We speculate that their dietary habits strongly influence their microbiota richness and antibiotic-resistance patterns, which represent growing and serious public health and environmental issue. Here we describe the aerobic microbiota richness of bats from an Atlantic Forest remnant in Southeastern Brazil, and the antibiotic-resistance patterns of bacteria of clinical importance. Oral and rectal cavities of 113 bats from Carlos Botelho State Park were swabbed. Samples were plated on 5% sheep blood and MacConkey agar and identified by the MALDI-TOF technique. Antibiotic susceptibility tests were performed using Kirby-Bauer’s antibiotic disc diffusion technique.We identified 596 isolates at the genus level and tentatively to the species level. Proteobacteria was the most abundant phylum in all the dietary guilds, representing 87% of the total identified samples. The most common bacteria within bat individuals were Escherichia coli, Klebsiella oxytoca and Serratia marcescens, and within bat species were Serratia marcescens, Pseudomonas sp. and Staphylococcus sp. Frugivores presented the most diverse microbiota. In general, the antibiogram results indicated a low occurrence of resistance on eigth potentially pathogenic bacteria species. The resistance to antibiotics found on our samples was related mostly to the intrinsic resistance of the tested species.The low occurrence of resistant bacteria in our samples could be related to the well preserved environment where bats were caught. Once the major causes of resistance-acquiring are related to anthropic activites, the controlled access of tourists on certain regions of the Park seems to be effectively protecting the environment.

Characterization of ESBL-Producing Enterobacteria from Fruit Bats in an Unprotected Area of Makokou, Gabon

“…This study has shown that urban environments play an important role in the dynamics of wildlife-human interactions and increase the frequency of wildlife-to-human transmission. In contrast, in a recent study, Brazilian fruit bats showed a low occurrence of resistance in their enterobacterial microbiota due to the well-preserved environment where the animal was captured [1]. However, the role of fruit bats in wildlife-human interactions is still poorly documented and needs to be more deeply investigated, particularly in the context of anthropogenic environments.…”

“…Bats are an important, widespread, and abundant taxon of mammals with over 1300 described species [1]. These species are considered as the reservoir of many viruses that periodically spread in human populations during disease outbreaks and whose dynamics need to be fully understood [2].…”

Bats as predators at the nests of tropical forest birds

“…It's wing morphology (shorter and broader) and flight (low aspect ratio) are characteristic of the phyllostomids, which have diverse diets and can glean prey from the surface of vegetation (Norberg and Rayner , Stockwell ). Phyllostomids that occur at the Atlantic Forest from São Paulo state (Garbino ) and have already been recorded at PECB (Cláudio et al ) include the nectarivore Glossophaga soricina , the frugivore Carollia perspicillata and the insectivore Glyphonycteris sylvestris . Based on general appearance, the same phyllostomid species, which we refer to hereafter as Phyllostomidae species 1, may have depredated the nests of the Atlantic royal flycatchers (Fig.…”

“…Cameras and nests were checked every 1–5 d, and recordings were analyzed in the laboratory. Although bat identification based solely on video records is difficult, we attempted identification by comparing the general characteristics of the observed animals with those species reported to occur in the region (Gardner , Garbino , Cláudio et al ).…”

MR1-Restricted T Cells with MAIT-like Characteristics Are Functionally Conserved in the Pteropid Bat Pteropus alecto

“…Bats are natural reservoirs to numerous viruses, capable of causing zoonotic diseases in other mammals, without showing pathological signs of disease themselves (Letko et al, 2020). In recent years, bats are also increasingly recognized as significant reservoirs for antimicrobial-resistant bacterial organisms of human and animal health significance (Claudio et al, 2018;Garces et al, 2019;McDougall et al, 2019;Nowak et al, 2017;Nowakiewicz et al, 2020). Combined with the bats' ability of powered and sustained flight, their geographical ranges, and interactions with other animals, bats are therefore considered a significant threat for the spread of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria and emergence of zoonotic viruses capable of causing disease in humans and domesticated animals.…”