Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
Research in Veterinary Science, cilt.200, 2026 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus)
This study aimed to isolate and identify Escherichia coli (E. coli) from the feces of wild bird species and to determine antibiotic susceptibilities, phylogroups, and virulence genes in the isolates obtained. For this purpose, a total of 575 fecal samples from 100 Eurasian Tree Sparrow, 250 Eurasian Jackdaw, 156 Eurasian Magpie, 4 Short-toed Snake-Eagle, 60 Rock dove, and 5 Long-legged Buzzard were used. E. coli isolation was performed using direct inoculation on MacConkey agar. The isolates were identified through phenotypic tests, Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption Ionization-Time of Flight Mass Spectrometry (MALDI-TOF-MS), and Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR). The susceptibility of the isolates to nine antibiotics was determined by the disk diffusion method. Phylogroups and the presence of virulence genes were determined by Clermont typing and the multiplex PCR (mPCR) methods, respectively. Among 575 feces samples, E. coli was isolated from 37 (6.43 %). The highest antibiotic resistance was found in ampicillin, azithromycin, and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole at 35.1 %. Moreover, 43.2 % of the E. coli isolates were detected as Multidrug-Resistant (MDR), and these isolates exhibited 13 different MDR patterns by demonstrating resistance to three to eight various antibiotic classes. While the most common phylogroup detected among isolates was A (18.9 %), none belonged to phylogroups C and F. 72.9 % had at least one virulence gene. The most frequently detected virulence gene was stx1 + stx2 (32.4 %), and all isolates were negative for bfpA and lt genes. In conclusion, considering the role of birds of prey in the ecological balance, the data obtained in this study suggest that wild birds may contribute to the spread of pathogenic and antibiotic-resistant E. coli strains globally.