Antibiotic resistance of Enterobacteriaceae present in a biosolid: A public health problem

Bacterial resistance to multiple antibiotics is considered one of the most important public health problem in Latin America. In Ecuador, there is a high rate of infectious diseases caused by Enterobacteriaceae which mainly affect the central nervous system, digestive and urinary tract, respiratory system, bloodstream, etc. This type of infections affects children, young people and adults with no effective treatments due to the resistance to even fifth-generation antibiotics. Inadequate procedures for handling and disposal of solid and liquid waste are another cause for the generation of this resistance and its consequences on population health. Urban wastewater treatment plants represent important reservoirs of human and animal commensal bacteria. The aim of this work was determinate the population of Enterobacteriaceae present in a biosolid from the septic tanks of the Domestic Wastewater Treatment Plant (Ambato-Ecuador) in order to evaluate the persistence of this bacterial family in the final effluent and its antimicrobial resistance patterns against some commercial antibiotics. Sixteen cultures with different morphology were obtained and described as common species genera within the Enterobacteriaceae: Escherichia, Salmonella, Proteus, Klebsiella, Shigella, Enterobacter. Strain 2872 was discarded due to its similar morpho-physiology to 2867. Thirteen of fifteen strains have tetracycline resistance and only two were inhibited (2873 and 2876); only one of the fifteen were resistant to polymyxin B (2870) and eight were resistant to cefepime.