03051-A: Antimicrobial Resistance in the Canine Vaginal Microbiome

One Health: Yes

Abstract

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a growing concern across all species, as bacteria adapt to antibiotics faster than new medications can be developed. The most efficient way to slow the advancement of AMR is to appropriately treat with antibiotics based on clinical signs, physical examination, and laboratory testing. Unfortunately, when treating a reproductive tract infection in a breeding canine there are two negative outcomes to consider- loss of reproductive function and loss of the animal. While urgency is needed in treating reproductive infections, we need to ensure that the antibiotics that veterinarians commonly prescribe will actually limit or stop the infection. The previous standard for detecting AMR within bacteria was culture and sensitivity performed by a diagnostic laboratory; however, newer technologies known as metagenomic analysis have allowed researchers to discover bacterial populations within different environments that were unseen by culture methods. Metagenomic analysis not only provides information on what bacteria are present within a given environment, for this study the canine vagina, but it also tells researchers which genes within those bacteria have certain functions, such as resistance to antibiotics. While metagenomic analysis does not supply information about whether the bacteria are alive and reproducing, it will provide veterinarians with a starting point to consider whether the antibiotics that are currently utilized to treat female reproductive infections are the best options given the resistance patterns detected in this study. Preventing further AMR is an urgent need, especially in companion animals where there are few restrictions on prescribing antibiotics.

Publication(s)

None at this time.