scholarly journals Indexed variation graphs for efficient and accurate resistome profiling

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Will P.M. Rowe ◽  
Martyn D Winn

AbstractBackgroundAntimicrobial resistance remains a major threat to global health. Profiling the collective antimicrobial resistance genes within a metagenome (the “resistome”) facilitates greater understanding of antimicrobial resistance gene diversity and dynamics. In turn, this can allow for gene surveillance, individualised treatment of bacterial infections and more sustainable use of antimicrobials. However, resistome profiling can be complicated by high similarity between reference genes, as well as the sheer volume of sequencing data and the complexity of analysis workflows. We have developed an efficient and accurate method for resistome profiling that addresses these complications and improves upon currently available tools.ResultsOur method combines a variation graph representation of gene sets with an LSH Forest indexing scheme to allow for fast classification of metagenomic sequence reads using similarity-search queries. Subsequent hierarchical local alignment of classified reads against graph traversals enables accurate reconstruction of full-length gene sequences using a scoring scheme. We provide our implementation, GROOT, and show it to be both faster and more accurate than a current reference-dependent tool for resistome profiling. GROOT runs on a laptop and can process a typical 2 gigabyte metagenome in 2 minutes using a single CPU.ConclusionWe present a method for resistome profiling that utilises a novel index and search strategy to accurately type resistance genes in metagenomic samples. The use of variation graphs yields several advantages over other methods using linear reference sequences. Our method is not restricted to resistome profiling and has the potential to improve current metagenomic workflows. The implementation is written in Go and is available at https://github.com/will-rowe/groot (MIT license).

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Adrienn Gréta Tóth ◽  
István Csabai ◽  
Gergely Maróti ◽  
Ákos Jerzsele ◽  
Attila Dubecz ◽  
...  

AbstractAntimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a global threat gaining more and more practical significance every year. The main determinants of AMR are the antimicrobial resistance genes (ARGs). Since bacteria can share genetic components via horizontal gene transfer, even non-pathogenic bacteria may provide ARG to any pathogens which they become physically close to (e.g. in the human gut). In addition, fermented food naturally contains bacteria in high amounts. In this study, we examined the diversity of ARG content in various kefir and yoghurt samples (products, grains, bacterial strains) using a unified metagenomic approach. We found numerous ARGs of commonly used fermenting bacteria. Even with the strictest filter restrictions, we identified ARGs undermining the efficacy of aminocoumarins, aminoglycosides, carbapenems, cephalosporins, cephamycins, diaminopyrimidines, elfamycins, fluoroquinolones, fosfomycins, glycylcyclines, lincosamides, macrolides, monobactams, nitrofurans, nitroimidazoles, penams, penems, peptides, phenicols, rifamycins, tetracyclines and triclosan. In the case of gene lmrD, we detected genetic environment providing mobility of this ARG. Our findings support the theory that during the fermentation process, the ARG content of foods can grow due to bacterial multiplication. The results presented suggest that the starting culture strains of fermented foods should be monitored and selected in order to decrease the intake of ARGs via foods.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
B Constantinides ◽  
KK Chau ◽  
TP Quan ◽  
G Rodger ◽  
M Andersson ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTEscherichia coli and Klebsiella spp. are important human pathogens that cause a wide spectrum of clinical disease. In healthcare settings, sinks and other wastewater sites have been shown to be reservoirs of antimicrobial-resistant E. coli and Klebsiella spp., particularly in the context of outbreaks of resistant strains amongst patients. Without focusing exclusively on resistance markers or a clinical outbreak, we demonstrate that many hospital sink drains are abundantly and persistently colonised with diverse populations of E. coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Klebsiella oxytoca, including both antimicrobial-resistant and susceptible strains. Using whole genome sequencing (WGS) of 439 isolates, we show that environmental bacterial populations are largely structured by ward and sink, with only a handful of lineages, such as E. coli ST635, being widely distributed, suggesting different prevailing ecologies which may vary as a result of different inputs and selection pressures. WGS of 46 contemporaneous patient isolates identified one (2%; 95% CI 0.05-11%) E. coli urine infection-associated isolate with high similarity to a prior sink isolate, suggesting that sinks may contribute to up to 10% of infections caused by these organisms in patients on the ward over the same timeframe. Using metagenomics from 20 sink-timepoints, we show that sinks also harbour many clinically relevant antimicrobial resistance genes including blaCTX-M, blaSHV and mcr, and may act as niches for the exchange and amplification of these genes. Our study reinforces the potential role of sinks in contributing to Enterobacterales infection and antimicrobial resistance in hospital patients, something that could be amenable to intervention.IMPORTANCEEscherichia coli and Klebsiella spp. cause a wide range of bacterial infections, including bloodstream, urine and lung infections. Previous studies have shown that sink drains in hospitals may be part of transmission chains in outbreaks of antimicrobial-resistant E. coli and Klebsiella spp., leading to colonisation and clinical disease in patients. We show that even in non-outbreak settings, contamination of sink drains by these bacteria is common across hospital wards, and that many antimicrobial resistance genes can be found and potentially exchanged in these sink drain sites. Our findings demonstrate that the colonisation of handwashing sink drains by these bacteria in hospitals is likely contributing to some infections in patients, and that additional work is needed to further quantify this risk, and to consider appropriate mitigating interventions.


2014 ◽  
Vol 80 (12) ◽  
pp. 3656-3666 ◽  
Author(s):  
Basanta Kumar Biswal ◽  
Ramzi Khairallah ◽  
Kareem Bibi ◽  
Alberto Mazza ◽  
Ronald Gehr ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTWastewater discharges may increase the populations of pathogens, includingEscherichia coli, and of antimicrobial-resistant strains in receiving waters. This study investigated the impact of UV and peracetic acid (PAA) disinfection on the prevalence of virulence and antimicrobial resistance genes in uropathogenicEscherichia coli(UPEC), the most abundantE. colipathotype in municipal wastewaters. Laboratory disinfection experiments were conducted on wastewater treated by physicochemical, activated sludge, or biofiltration processes; 1,766E. coliisolates were obtained for the evaluation. The target disinfection level was 200 CFU/100 ml, resulting in UV and PAA doses of 7 to 30 mJ/cm2and 0.9 to 2.0 mg/liter, respectively. The proportions of UPECs were reduced in all samples after disinfection, with an average reduction by UV of 55% (range, 22% to 80%) and by PAA of 52% (range, 11% to 100%). Analysis of urovirulence genes revealed that the decline in the UPEC populations was not associated with any particular virulence factor. A positive association was found between the occurrence of urovirulence and antimicrobial resistance genes (ARGs). However, the changes in the prevalence of ARGs in potential UPECs were different following disinfection, i.e., UV appears to have had no effect, while PAA significantly reduced the ARG levels. Thus, this study showed that both UV and PAA disinfections reduced the proportion of UPECs and that PAA disinfection also reduced the proportion of antimicrobial resistance gene-carrying UPEC pathotypes in municipal wastewaters.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Pieper ◽  
Temesgen Dadi ◽  
Lukasz Grzeskowiak ◽  
Laura Pieper ◽  
Britta Siegmund ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) is an increasing zoonotic health threat and has also been documented as a cause of enteritis outbreaks in neonatal pigs. Furthermore, CDI in neonatal piglets cause changes in microbial gut colonization. We hypothesized that an imbalanced microbial colonization in piglets with CDI could be associated with an altered abundance of antimicrobial resistance genes. Results: We analyzed fecal metagenomic data of lactating sows (S), their piglets during suckling (SP), the same piglets two weeks after weaning (WP), 5-day old artificially reared and formula-fed siblings (FP) and FP infected with C. difficile (FP-CD) for microbiota composition and antimicrobial resistance gene abundance. FP and FP-CD piglets had an immature-type microbiota and increased abundance of antimicrobial resistance genes. A co-occurrence of genes encoding for resistance against aminoglycosides (e.g. aph(3”)-lb, aph(6)-ld, ant(2”)-la), β-lactams (blaCTX-M, blaTEM), fluoroquinolones (pat(A) macrolides (mph(A)), sulfonamides (sul1, sul2), polypeptides (e.g. pmrB, pmrC, arnA, bac(A)) and tetracyclines (e.g. tet(A-D),) was observed. Conclusion: Increased abundance of antimicrobial resistance genes in formula feeding and concomitant CDI may be associated with therapeutic resistance later in life and warrant further studies.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aislinn D. Rowan-Nash ◽  
Rafael Araos ◽  
Erika M.C. D’Agata ◽  
Peter Belenky

ABSTRACTBackgroundThe issue of antimicrobial resistance continues to grow worldwide, and long-term care facilities are significant reservoirs of antimicrobial-resistant organisms, in part due to high frequency of antimicrobial use. Patients with advanced dementia are particularly vulnerable to multidrug-resistant organism acquisition and antimicrobial overuse, which has negative consequences for the gut microbiome and can contribute to the selection and propagation of antimicrobial resistance genes. In this study, we longitudinally examined a group of advanced dementia patients treated with the fluoroquinolone antimicrobial levofloxacin, finding a correlation between abundance of pathogens and antimicrobial resistance genes, which we confirmed in a larger cohort of subjects with advanced dementia.ResultsWe observed significant inter- and intra-subject heterogeneity in the composition of the microbiota of the longitudinal levofloxacin cohort, suggesting temporal instability. Within this dataset, we did not find significant impacts of levofloxacin on the diversity, composition, function, or resistome of the gut microbiota of this population. However, we were able to link the antimicrobial resistance gene burden in a sample with the relative abundance of several pathobionts – particularly Escherichia coli, Proteus mirabilis, and Enterococcus faecalis, as well as less-prevalent species including Providencia stuartii and Staphylococcus haemolyticus. Furthermore, we used metagenomic assembly and binning to demonstrate that these species had higher genomic resistance gene levels than common gut commensals, and we were able to predict antimicrobial resistance gene burden from the relative abundances of these species in a separate, larger cohort from the same population.ConclusionsWe found that the relative abundances of several pathobionts were correlated with and were even predictive of the level of antimicrobial resistance genes in corresponding samples, and that these species carried high levels of resistances genes in their assembled genomes. In order to test this observation, we utilized a larger metagenomics dataset from a similar population and confirmed the association between pathobiont abundance and antimicrobial resistance genes. Given the high frequency with which these species were found at high levels in this population and the underlying vulnerability to infection with multidrug resistant organisms of advanced dementia patients, attention to microbial blooms of these species may be warranted. Additionally, in this study, we were able to utilize genomic assembly from metagenomic data to more definitively associate antimicrobial resistance gene levels with specific assembled species; as this technology continues to develop, assembly could prove to be a valuable method to monitor both specific resistance genes and blooms of multidrug-resistant organisms.


2006 ◽  
Vol 73 (2) ◽  
pp. 477-484 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katia Hamelin ◽  
Guillaume Bruant ◽  
Abdel El-Shaarawi ◽  
Stephen Hill ◽  
Thomas A. Edge ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Although the number of Escherichia coli bacteria in surface waters can differ greatly between locations, relatively little is known about the distribution of E. coli pathotypes in surface waters used as sources for drinking or recreation. DNA microarray technology is a suitable tool for this type of study due to its ability to detect high numbers of virulence and antimicrobial resistance genes simultaneously. Pathotype, phylogenetic group, and antimicrobial resistance gene profiles were determined for 308 E. coli isolates from surface water samples collected from diverse aquatic ecosystems at six different sites in the St. Clair River and Detroit River areas. A higher frequency (48%) of E. coli isolates possessing virulence and antimicrobial resistance genes was observed in an urban site located downstream of wastewater effluent outfalls than in the other examined sites (average of 24%). Most E. coli pathotypes were extraintestinal pathogenic E. coli (ExPEC) pathotypes and belonged to phylogenetic groups B2 and D. The ExPEC pathotypes were found to occur across all aquatic ecosystems investigated, including riverine, estuarine, and offshore lake locations. The results of this environmental study using DNA microarrays highlight the widespread distribution of E. coli pathotypes in aquatic ecosystems and the potential public health threat of E. coli pathotypes originating from municipal wastewater sources.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adrienn Gréta Tóth ◽  
István Csabai ◽  
Eszter Krikó ◽  
Dóra Tőzsér ◽  
Gergely Maróti ◽  
...  

AbstractBackgroundThe increasing prevalence of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a significant threat to global health. The widespread use of antibiotics is increasingly shortening the time it takes for resistant strains to develop. More and more multi-drug-resistant bacterial strains cause life-threatening infections and the death of tens of thousands of people each year. Beyond disease control animals are often given antibiotics for growth promotion or increased feed efficiency, which further increase the chance of the development of multi-resistant strains. After the consumption of unprocessed animal products, these strains may meet the human bacteriota. Among the foodborne and the human populations, antimicrobial resistance genes (ARGs) may be shared by horizontal gene transfer. This study aims to test the presence of antimicrobial resistance genes in milk metagenome, investigate their genetic position and their linkage to mobile genetic elements.ResultsWe have analyzed raw milk samples from public markets sold for human consumption. The milk samples contained genetic material from various bacterial species and the detailed analysis uncovered the presence of several antimicrobial resistance genes. The samples contained complete ARGs influencing the effectiveness of acridine dye, cephalosporin, cephamycin, fluoroquinolone, penam, peptide antibiotics and tetracycline. One of the ARGs, PC1 beta-lactamase may also be a mobile element that facilitates the transfer of resistance genes to other bacteria, e.g. to the ones living in the human gut.ConclusionBesides the animal products’ antibiotic residuals, their potentially transmissible antimicrobial resistance gene content may also contribute to the development of human pathogenic bacteria’s antimicrobial resistance.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emma Mills ◽  
Erin Sullivan ◽  
Jasna Kovac

A collection of 85 Bacillus cereus group isolates were screened for phenotypic resistance to nine antibiotics using disk diffusion and broth microdilution. The broth microdilution antimicrobial results were interpreted using the CLSI M45 breakpoints for Bacillus spp. Due to the lack of Bacillus spp. disk diffusion breakpoints, the results obtained with the disk diffusion assay were interpreted using the CLSI M100 breakpoints for Staphylococcus spp. We identified significant (p < 0.05) discrepancies in resistance interpretation between the two methods for ampicillin, gentamicin, rifampicin, tetracycline, and trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole. Antimicrobial resistance genes were detected using unassembled and assembled whole-genome sequences with Ariba and Abricate, respectively, to assess the sensitivity and specificity for predicting phenotypic resistance based on the presence of antimicrobial resistance genes. We found antimicrobial resistance gene presence to be a poor indicator for phenotypic resistance, calling for further investigation of mechanisms underlying antimicrobial resistance in the B. cereusgroup. Genes with poor sensitivity and/or specificity, as determined based on broth microdilution results included rph(rifampicin, 0%, 95%), mphgenes (erythromycin, 0%, 96%), and all vangenes (vancomycin, 100%, 35%). However, Bc(ampicillin, 64%, 100%) andtet genes (tetracycline, 67%, 100%) were highly specific, albeit moderately sensitive indicators of phenotypic resistance based on broth microdilution results. Only beta-lactam resistance genes (Bc, BcII, and blaTEM) were highly sensitive (94%) and specific (100%) markers of resistance to ceftriaxone based on the disk diffusion results, providing further evidence of these beta-lactams' role in nonsusceptibility of Bacillus cereus group isolates to ceftriaxone.


2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles Langelier ◽  
Michael Graves ◽  
Katrina Kalantar ◽  
Saharai Caldera ◽  
Robert Durrant ◽  
...  

AbstractWe engaged metagenomic next generation sequencing to longitudinally assess the gut microbiota and antimicrobial resistomes of international travelers to understand global exchange of resistant organisms. Travel resulted in an increase in antimicrobial resistance genes and a greater proportion of Escherichia species within gut microbial communities without impacting diversity.


2019 ◽  
Vol 64 (2) ◽  
pp. 125-137 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liese Van Gompel ◽  
Wietske Dohmen ◽  
Roosmarijn E C Luiken ◽  
Martijn Bouwknegt ◽  
Lourens Heres ◽  
...  

Abstract Objectives Slaughterhouse staff is occupationally exposed to antimicrobial resistant bacteria. Studies reported high antimicrobial resistance gene (ARG) abundances in slaughter pigs. This cross-sectional study investigated occupational exposure to tetracycline (tetW) and macrolide (ermB) resistance genes and assessed determinants for faecal tetW and ermB carriage among pig slaughterhouse workers. Methods During 2015–2016, 483 faecal samples and personal questionnaires were collected from workers in a Dutch pig abattoir, together with 60 pig faecal samples. Human dermal and respiratory exposure was assessed by examining 198 carcass, 326 gloves, and 33 air samples along the line, next to 198 packed pork chops to indicate potential consumer exposure. Samples were analyzed by qPCR (tetW, ermB). A job exposure matrix was created by calculating the percentage of tetW and ermB positive carcasses or gloves for each job position. Multiple linear regression models were used to link exposure to tetW and ermB carriage. Results Workers are exposed to tetracycline and macrolide resistance genes along the slaughter line. Tetw and ermB gradients were found for carcasses, gloves, and air filters. One packed pork chop contained tetW, ermB was non-detectable. Human faecal tetW and ermB concentrations were lower than in pig faeces. Associations were found between occupational tetW exposure and human faecal tetW carriage, yet, not after model adjustments. Sampling round, nationality, and smoking were determinants for ARG carriage. Conclusion We demonstrated clear environmental tetracycline and macrolide resistance gene exposure gradients along the slaughter line. No robust link was found between ARG exposure and human faecal ARG carriage.


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