Work

Occurrence of Virulence and Antibiotic Resistance in Pseudomonas aeruginosa Isolated from the Environmental Water from Tamaulipas, Mexico

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: Background/Objectives: Antibiotic-resistant strains have been reported in aquatic ecosystems, with varying prevalence and resistance patterns by region. In Tamaulipas, Mexico, little information has been generated on this topic, making it difficult to estimate their potential risk to environmental and human health. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate the presence and virulence of antibiotic-resistant strains of Pseudomonas aeruginosa in environmental water from Tamaulipas, Mexico. Methods: One hundred water samples were collected from different water bodies in Tamaulipas to identify P. aeruginosa by PCR and MALDI-TOF, virulence gene detection, antimicrobial susceptibility testing, and detection class 1 integrons. Results: In this study, 109 P. aeruginosa strains were isolated. Eight virulence genes were identified in 47.7% to 80.7% of the strains, with the rhlAB gene being the most frequent. The strains showed resistance or intermedia resistance to 10 of the 16 antibiotics tested, in a range of resistance values 0.9–66.2%. In total, 100% (109/109) were susceptible to ceftazidime (CAZ), gentamicin (GM), amikacin (AN), netilmicin (NET), tobramycin (NN) and norfloxacin (NOR), and 65.7% were resistant to ticarcillin/clavulanic acid and 53.5% to ticarcillin; the resistance to the remaining antibiotics was between 19.4% and 0.9%. The class 1 integron was not identified in any of the strains analyzed. Conclusions:P. aeruginosa in environmental waters of Tamaulipas showed potential to cause infections and low rates of resistance to most of the antibiotics tested. However, 20% were resistant to one of the most common treatments, which could pose a risk to public health.

Source: Antibiotics

DOI: 10.3390/antibiotics14121278

Authors: Jessica I. Licea-Herrera, Abraham Guerrero, Paulina Guel, Virgilio Bocanegra-García, Gildardo Rivera, Ana Verónica Martínez-Vázquez

Institutions: Instituto Politécnico Nacional, Centro de Investigación en Alimentación y Desarrollo, Secretaría de Ciencia, Humanidades, Tecnología e Innovación

Language: English

Topic: Pharmaceutical and Antibiotic Environmental Impacts

Subfield: Pollution

Field: Environmental Science

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDGs: Good health and well-being, Clean water and sanitation

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $3,499