E coli strains isolated from pigs were investigated with respect to antimicrobial resistances and prevalence of R-plasmids. Also determined were properties of R-plasmids by plasmid conjugation, curing and southern hybridization using gene probes. All of 400 E coli strains were resistant to CL and SU, and 0.3% to 96.8% of the strains were resistant to most antimicrobials such as TC, PG, AM, SM, CP, GM, EM, NM, etc, while all strains were sensitive to AK. All strains were also multiply resistant to three to twelve antimicrobials. The resistances to PC, SM, TC, AM, CP, SU and ST were transferable and supposed to be mediated by R-plasmids which were opportunistic for transposition into chromosome.
Plasmids bigger in size than chromosomal DNA were considered as R-plasmids and most plasmids in small size (<4/Kb) proved as cryptic plasmids or nonconjugative R-plasmids. In a strain(No 99), AM resistant property was determined from both chromosomal DNA and R-plasmid DNA which is bigger in size than chromosome.
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