Prevalence of Antibiotic-Resistant Escherichia coli Isolated from Beef Cattle and Dairy Cows in a Livestock Farm in Yamagata, Japan

Antimicrobials are used on livestock farms to treat and prevent infectious animal diseases and to promote the growth of livestock. We monitored the prevalence of antibiotic-resistant Escherichia coli (AR-EC) isolates from beef cattle (BC) and dairy cows (DCs) on a livestock farm in Yamagata, Japan. Fecal samples from 5 male BC and 10 male DCs were collected monthly from October 2022 to November 2023. In total, 152 and 884 E. coli isolates were obtained from the BC and DC fecal samples, respectively. Notably, 26 (17.1%) and 29 (3.3%) E. coli isolates in the BC and DC groups, respectively, were resistant to at least one antibiotic. The resistance rates to tetracycline, ampicillin, gentamicin, and chloramphenicol of the isolates were significantly higher than those to the other antimicrobials. The tetracycline resistance genes tetA (70.6%) in DCs and tetB (28%) in BC were identified, along with the bla_TEM gene in ampicillin-resistant isolates (BC: 84.2%, DCs: 42.8%). Despite significant variations in the monthly detection rates of AR-EC isolated from BC and DCs throughout the sampling period, the judicious use of antimicrobials reduced the occurrence of AR-EC in both BC and DCs, thereby minimizing their release into the environment.