The Prevalence of ESBL-Producing Strains of E. coli and K. pneumoniae, Isolated from Pets Treated with Antibiotics – Preliminary Remarks

The prevalence of the strains of extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL)-producing Enterobacteriaceae is continuously increasing at the global level.The appearance of ESBL enzymes represents a danger for the efficacy of treatments with beta-lactam antibiotics (Măciucă I., 2015).The aim of the study resided in assessing the prevalence of ESBL-positive strains of E. coli and K. pneumoniae in pets that were treated with antibiotics (Enrofloxacin, Ciprofloxacin, Cefadroxil) for various bacterial infectious diseases.In February 2015, 29 faeces samples were collected at the rectal level from dogs and cats.The samples were collected with the help of sterile buffers.For the screening of the strains of (ESBL)-producing Enterobacteriaceae, the Oxoid Brilliance chromogenic ESBL Agar medium was used, a specific medium for the isolation of (ESBL)-producing Enterobacteriaceae because it contains cefpodoxim, a second-generation cephalosporin to which all the extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL)-producing strains are resistant.The phenotypic confirmation of the isolated ESBL strains was achieved by using the combined disc method (Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute, 2014).The taxonomic classification of the strains that were isolated was achieved by testing some minimal biochemical characteristics with the help of the MIU, TSI, EMBA, TBX tests.The E. coli ATCC 25922 and K.pneumoniae ATCC 700603 strains were used as a reference for quality control for the antibiotic sensitivity test.The results have been interpreted according to the CLSI 2014 standard.As a result of sample processing, we noticed a prevalence of 62.06% in the individuals who were carriers of E. coli and K. Pneumoniae ESBL-positive strains.