 Original article written by Mark Clements Risks to humans from ionophore use in animals remain unclear but new study highlights potential threat. Growing evidence of ionophore use as a contributor to antibiotic resistance, resulting in a threat to human health, could see greater restrictions placed on the drugs. While the use of ionophores has declined over recent years in some markets, they continue to be a central element of coccidiosis control programs in others. A new study, however, has found that pathogens around the world have genes that allow them to resist ionophores and that these genes are often linked to other resistance genes. The study, published in mSphere, a journal of the American Society for Microbiology, was conducted by researchers at Canada’s Carleton University Department of Biology. It builds on previous work that raised the possibility of co-selection between agriculturally used ionophores and medically important antibiotics. In this latest study, funded by the Canadian government and agrifood company Perdue Farms, a review of publicly available data revealed bacteria with the genes narA and narB. These genes confer resistance to ionophores and are often linked to other resistance genes. Where ionophores are used, they can lead bacteria to carry both types of resistance, making them harder to kill. Worldwide resistance Ionophores are used more widely than simply in poultry production, but it had been assumed that they did not contribute to resistance to antibiotics used in human medicine. Now, however, there is growing concern that their use could co-select for clinically relevant antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Researcher Dr. Alex Wong commented that while ionophores have long been considered safe for use in poultry, the study suggested that their use could fuel the growth of antibiotic resistance in medically relevant drugs. The ionophore resistance genes have been found worldwide, with over 2,400 narAB bearing isolates reported from 51 countries. Isolates were derived from a range of host species, including poultry, cattle and humans. The researchers noted that there is clear potential for ionophore use to impact the presence of bacteria with antibiotic resistance genes in the food supply. Original article published on WATTPoultry antibiotic resistanceanimal welfare newsionophore resistanceComments are closed.
|