Prevalence and molecular epidemiology of carbapenemase-producing Enterobacterales isolated from dog and cat faeces submitted to veterinary laboratories in the USA

Jaclyn Dietrich; Tessa E LeCuyer; G Kenitra Hendrix; Claire R Burbick; Megan E Jacob; Barbara A Byrne; Karen Olsen; Maria Mitchell; Olgica Ceric; Rachel Lin; Jessica Joneson; Megan Lintner; Alexandra Fox; Diamond McClendon; Trevor Alexander; Kayla Joyce; Melissa Byrd; Jason Clinton; Keith Snipes; Laura Peak; Stephen D Cole

doi:10.1111/zph.13144

Prevalence and molecular epidemiology of carbapenemase-producing Enterobacterales isolated from dog and cat faeces submitted to veterinary laboratories in the USA

Zoonoses Public Health. 2024 May 15. doi: 10.1111/zph.13144. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Jaclyn Dietrich¹, Tessa E LeCuyer², G Kenitra Hendrix³, Claire R Burbick⁴, Megan E Jacob⁵, Barbara A Byrne⁶, Karen Olsen⁷, Maria Mitchell⁸, Olgica Ceric⁹, Rachel Lin¹, Jessica Joneson³, Megan Lintner³, Alexandra Fox¹⁰, Diamond McClendon¹⁰, Trevor Alexander⁴, Kayla Joyce⁴, Melissa Byrd⁵, Jason Clinton⁵, Keith Snipes¹¹, Laura Peak⁸, Stephen D Cole¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Pathobiology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.
² Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology, Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, Virginia, USA.
³ Indiana Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory, College of Veterinary Medicine, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana, USA.
⁴ Washington Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory, College of Veterinary Medicine, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington, USA.
⁵ Department of Population Health and Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA.
⁶ Department of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California, Davis, Davis, California, USA.
⁷ Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA.
⁸ Louisiana Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory, College of Veterinary Medicine, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA.
⁹ Veterinary Laboratory Investigation and Response Network, Center for Veterinary Medicine, Food and Drug Administration, Laurel, Maryland, USA.
¹⁰ Virginia Tech Animal Laboratory Services, Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University A, Blacksburg, Virginia, USA.
¹¹ William R. Pritchard Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California, Davis, Davis, California, USA.

PMID: 38750653
DOI: 10.1111/zph.13144

Abstract

Aims: To estimate the prevalence of carbapenemase-producing Enterobacterales (CPE) carriage among pets using faecal specimens submitted to veterinary diagnostic laboratories throughout the US. A secondary aim was to employ whole-genome sequencing (WGS) to characterize isolates of CPE from companion animals and compare them to publicly available CPE genomes.

Methods and results: To estimate the prevalence of CPE in companion animals in the USA, a multicenter surveillance study including 8 different veterinary diagnostic laboratories from across the USA was conducted. Briefly, remnant faecal specimens from dogs and cats were screened using two selective agar plates (CHROMID Carba and MacConkey with 1 mg/L cefotaxime and 0.125 mg/L meropenem) and presumptive CPE isolates screened by the modified carbapenemase inactivation method for carbapenemase production. A total of 2393 specimens were screened and yielded 196 isolates for carbapenemase screening. A total of 5 isolates from 4 dogs and 1 cat at 3 different veterinary diagnostic laboratories were confirmed to produce a carbapenemase (0.21%). Whole-genome sequencing (WGS) revealed two E. coli (ST167) isolates that both produced an NDM-5 carbapenemase, two Enterobacter hormaechei (ST171) isolates that produced an NDM-5 carbapenemase and a KPC-4 carbapenemase respectively and one Klebsiella oxytoca (ST199) that produced an Oxa-48-type carbapenemase. Both E. coli isolates were found to be within at least 22 SNPs of previously characterized canine and human CPE isolates.

Conclusions: This study demonstrates that the prevalence of CPE among companion animals is relatively low (0.21%) but that given the genetic relatedness of animal isolates to human isolates, additional surveillance is needed.

Keywords: carbapenemase‐producing Enterobacterales; cats; companion animals; dogs; prevalence.

Zoonoses and Public Health© 2024 The Author(s). Zoonoses and Public Health published by Wiley-VCH GmbH. This article has been contributed to by U.S. Government employees and their work is in the public domain in the USA.

Grants and funding

1-U18-FD007506-01/FD/FDA HHS/United States