VIM-1 carbapenemase-producing Escherichia coli in gulls from southern France

Acquired carbapenemases currently pose one of the most worrying public health threats related to antimicrobial resistance. A NDM-1-producing Salmonella Corvallis was reported in 2013 in a wild raptor. Further research was needed to understand the role of wild birds in the transmission of bacteria resistant to carbapenems. Our aim was to investigate the presence of carbapenem-resistant Escherichia coli in gulls from southern France. In 2012, we collected 158 cloacal swabs samples from two gull species: yellow-legged gulls (Larus michahellis) that live in close contact with humans and slender-billed gulls (Chroicocephalus genei) that feed at sea. We molecularly compared the carbapenem-resistant bacteria we isolated through culture on selective media with the carbapenem-susceptible strains sampled from both gull species and from stool samples of humans hospitalized in the study area. The genes coding for carbapenemases were tested by multiplex PCR. We isolated 22 carbapenem-resistant E. coli strains from yellow-legged gulls while none were isolated from slender-billed gulls. All carbapenem-resistant isolates were positive for bla_VIM-1 gene. VIM-1-producing E. coli were closely related to carbapenem-susceptible strains isolated from the two gull species but also to human strains. Our results are alarming enough to make it urgently necessary to determine the contamination source of the bacteria we identified. More generally, our work highlights the need to develop more bridges between studies focusing on wildlife and humans in order to improve our knowledge of resistant bacteria transmission routes.