Intestinal Microflora in 45 Crows in Ueno Zoo and the in vitro Susceptibilities of 29 Escherichia coli Isolates to 14 Antimicrobial Agents

Abstract

ABSTRACT. Microorganisms from 45 jungle crows (Corvus macrorhynchos) captured from July to December 2002 at Ueno Zoo, Tokyo were identified as Escherichia coli, Proteus mirabilis, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Klebsiella oxytoca, Enterobacter aerogenes, Enterobacter cloacae, Enterobacter agglomerans, Pseudomonas maltophila, Staphylococcus spp., Micrococcus spp., and Streptococcus spp. E. coli showed the highest rate of isolation (21.6%). In an in vitro susceptibility test for 29 isolates of E. coli to 14 antimicrobial agents, all the isolates were resistant to penicillin G, vancomycin, erythromycin, lincomycin, bicozamycin, sulfadimethoxine, and olaquindox . Several isolates of them were also resistant to tetracycline, oxytetracycline, streptomycin, chloramphenicol, and ampicillin. Twenty-nine isolates were divided into 19 serogroups and the most frequently identified serogroups were O8, O114 and O144, which showed the same multidrug-resistant patterns. KEY WORDS: crow, Enterobacteria Escherichia coli, in vitro susceptibility test.

Population Abundance of Potentially Pathogenic Organisms in Intestinal Microbiome of Jungle Crow (Corvus macrorhynchos) Shown with 16S rRNA Gene-Based Microbial Community Analysis

“…Microorganisms' populations that collectively comprise microbiota in crow's digestive system are associated with rearing conditions and environment. The intestinal microbial communities do not only have an important role in host metabolism [2] but also relate with zoonosis and food poisoning to human, animals, and birds [3]. Crows are considered as potential sources for fecal contamination of water supplies and foods, and the pathogens are transmitted through the fecal-oral route when humans would consume those contaminated foods or water [4].…”

“…Although microorganisms in the digestive tract of Jungle Crow have been studied by using conventional culture-based assays [3], sufficient coverage of nonabundant and unculturable microbial groups in the gut have not been obtained. Interestingly, in spite of its importance in the public health relevance, no information on crow gut microbiota is available.…”

Absence of vancomycin-resistant enterococci among highly ESBL-positive crows (Corvus splendens) foraging on hospital waste in Bangladesh

“…It occupies different ecological niches, including household areas, city dumps, hospital dumps, and water sources like lakes, ponds, and rivers. The house crow has been shown to carry several human pathogenic bacteria in its intestines ( 25 , 26 ). A study on these samples demonstrated that 59% of the crows living on hospital waste were potential carriers of clinically relevant ESBL-producing E. coli and Klebsiella ( 19 ), and hospital waste has been reported as a potential source of antibiotic-resistant bacteria ( 19 , 27 ).…”

Wild birds as reservoirs of multidrug-resistant enterobacteria in Mulungu, Brazil

“…In the natural environment in which they live, several species of enterobacteria also occur, as they are ubiquitous, in soil or water. Thus, Enterobacteriaceae have been isolated mainly from omnivorous, piscivorous and healthy carnivore birds [46,48,49,50,51].…”