Ring-tailed coatis (Nasua nasua) are major carriers of ESBL-producing and diarrheagenic E. coli in an Ecological Park in São Paulo, Brazil.

Escherichia coli is widely distributed in the intestinal microbiota of vertebrates, and the presence of multidrug-resistant (MDR) and extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)-producing strains in wild animals in urban areas is a result of anthropogenic factors. A total of 232 E. coli isolates were obtained from samples of rectal swabs from 149 coatis. Among the strains, 106 (45.7 %) were classified as MDR, and 47 (20.3 %) showed the ESBL phenotype. Among the 149 animals, 84 (56.4 %) were carriers of MDR strains, and 33 (22.1 %) carried ESBL-producing strains. Regarding beta-lactamase-encoding genes, 54 isolates (23.3 %) were positive for blaTEM, 26 (11.2 %) for blaCTX-M group 2, 16 (6.9 %) for blaCTX-M group 1, two (0.9 %) for blaCTX-M group 8, and one (0.4 %) for blaCTX-M group 9. No isolate was positive for blaSHV. Seven strains (3.0 %) were classified as aEPEC, one (0.4 %) as tEPEC, one (0.4 %) as ETEC, and one (0.4 %) as EAEC. Two aEPEC strains were classified as MDR and ESBL producers, one positive for blaCTX-M group 1 and the other for blaCTX-M group 2. In addition, the strain identified as EAEC was also classified as MDR and presented the blaTEM gene. The high prevalence of MDR and ESBL-producing bacteria in ring-tailed coatis indicates the impact of the environment´s anthropomorphization on the intestinal microbiota of wild animals in urban environments, and the presence of diarrheagenic strains may indicate that coatis are reservoirs of enteropathogenic E. coli.