Tracking virulence and AMR in colibacillosis isolates from Saskatchewan broiler farms using whole genome sequencing.

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

Colibacillosis, an acute disease in poultry caused by Escherichia coli, is the #1 bacterial disease leading to economic losses in the Saskatchewan and Canadian broiler industries. Currently, we do not know if the presence of colibacillosis in a flock represents a farm-management issue or if there are specific, "virulent" E. coli strains that cause disease. The potential sources of disease isolates are under debate, as is the proper way to control disease now that antibiotic use is so heavily regulated. Our project is designed to investigate these questions, by using modern sequencing-based methods to track the E. coli isolates from SK broiler flocks. Comparing the whole genomes, or the complete collection of genes in each E. coli isolate, from healthy and diseased birds will allow us to determine the impact of genetic and environmental factors in infection. This will be critical for helping to reduce the number of colibacillosis cases in Saskatchewan. Our analysis will also reveal the antimicrobial resistance (AMR) profiles of the E. coli isolates. The Partnership between the Chicken Farmers of Saskatchewan and Drs. Aaron White, Jo-Anne Dillon and Joseph Rubin, leaders in the field of bacterial ecology and antibiotic resistance, will aim to communicate the findings back to producers and larger producer groups within Canada. Our results can have a wide-ranging impact for better understanding colibacillosis, learning new strategies to control the disease and developing tools for the industry moving forward. These modern tools are also being used to track human isolates within hospitals, and will have future applications for on-farm diagnosis and treatment evaluation. Our project also aims to get ahead of future AMR trends to fill in the knowledge gaps that exist in Saskatchewan.