<p>Co-Existence of <em>mcr-1</em> and <em>bla</em>_NDM-5 in an <em>Escherichia</em> <em>coli</em> Strain Isolated from the Pharmaceutical Industry, WWTP</p>

Abstract

The emergence of the plasmid-borne colistin-resistant gene (mcr-1) poses a great threat to human health. What is worse, the recent observations of the coexistence of mcr-1 with other antimicrobial resistance genes in some bacteria cause further concern. Here, we present the first report of a wild Escherichia coli strain that co-carries an mcr-1 encoding phage-like IncY plasmid (pR15_MCR-1) and a bla NDM-5 encoding IncX3 plasmid (pR15_NDM-5) from a pharmaceutical industry, wastewater treatment plant, in China. This study highlights the spreading of E. coli carrying both mcr-1 and bla NDM-5 genes in the pharmaceutical industry. Importance: Escherichia coli strains that carry both mcr-1 and bla NDM-5 genes are of great health concern and are already found in humans and animals worldwide, yet there is a paucity of observations of this resistant strain in the environment. Here we present the first isolation of an E. coli strain (R15) that co-carries mcr-1 and bla NDM-5 genes from a wastewater treatment plant in China. Whole-genome sequencing indicated that R15 harbored two plasmids, pR15_MCR-1 and pR15_NDM-5, that carry mcr-1 and bla NDM-5 , respectively. The observation of this wild-derived E. coli strain that carries mcr-1 and bla NDM-5 genes simultaneously calls for the urgency to improve monitoring and reducing its further spreading.

First Report of an Escherichia coli Strain Carrying the Colistin Resistance Determinant mcr-1 from a Dog in South Korea

“…Consistent with this study, the transmission of mcr-carrying E. coli between humans and companion animals, especially dogs, was reported in China [9,10]. Additionally, E. coli harboring the mcr-1 gene has been frequently identified from environmental samples [33][34][35]. Guenther et al [36] showed a clear link between mcr-1-carrying E. coli isolated from the environment and those from humans and dogs.…”

The Co-occurrence of NDM-5, MCR-1, and FosA3-Encoding Plasmids Contributed to the Generation of Extensively Drug-Resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae

“…Several studies also reported some co-existence of resistant-genes in Enterobacteriaceae, like fosA3 and bla KPC−2 (Tang et al, 2020), or mcr-1 and bla NDM−5 (Sun et al, 2016), these co-existences make the strain become extensively drug-resistant to multiple antibiotics. Notably, although there are several reports about the co-existence of mcr-1 and bla NDM−5 in one plasmid or two separated plasmids, most of these plasmids were harbored by E. coli strains of animal origin or environmental origin, which is uncommon in K. pneumoniae (Yang et al, 2016;Quan et al, 2017;Mao et al, 2018;Wang et al, 2018Wang et al, , 2021Chen et al, 2019;Liu and Song, 2019;Han et al, 2020;Yuan et al, 2021).…”

Metagenomic Insights into Chicken Gut Antibiotic Resistomes and Microbiomes

“…In November 2015, the plasmid-mediated polymyxin resistance gene mcr-1 was first identified, subsequently, multiple Enterobacteriaceae members with different host origins were found carrying the resistance gene in more than 50 countries per continent, suggesting that mcr-1 was spread globally ( 24 ). And it has been demonstrated that the transposon part Tn6330 (IS APl1 - mcr-1 -orf-IS APl1 ) can be removed from the plasmid to form an IS APl1 - mcr-1 -orf intermediate loop which can be inserted into other IS APl1 -carrying plasmids ( 25 , 26 ). Meanwhile, the gut flora can act as a suitable mixing vessel to facilitate the spread of mcr through horizontal gene transfer ( 26 , 27 ).…”