Occurrence and antibiotic resistance profiles of Campylobacter spp. in urban broiler production systems in Uganda.

BACKGROUND

Urban broiler production is rapidly expanding in East Africa, raising public health concerns about zoonotic pathogens such as Campylobacter and the spread of antibiotic resistance. This study investigated the occurrence and phenotypic and genotypic antibiotic resistance of Campylobacter from broilers in urban and peri‑urban Uganda.

METHODS

A total of 194 samples, including cloacal swabs (n = 157) and boot socks (n = 37), were collected from 28 randomly selected farms in three districts. Campylobacter was isolated according to ISO 10272-1 and tested for susceptibility to nalidixic acid, ciprofloxacin, tetracycline, streptomycin, and erythromycin by disk diffusion following European Committee on Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing guidelines. Species identification and resistance genotypes were determined by whole-genome sequencing. Isolates that could not be re-cultivated were excluded from further analyses.

RESULTS

Campylobacter was isolated from all 194 samples (100%). Of the 157 sequenced isolates, 54% (n = 84) were Campylobacter coli and 46% (n = 73) were Campylobacter jejuni. Of the 170 isolates tested for antibiotic susceptibility, 16% (n = 28) were resistant to all five antibiotics. No isolate was susceptible to ciprofloxacin. Multidrug resistance occurred in 61% (51/84) of C. coli and in 6% (4/72) of C. jejuni isolates. Strong concordance was observed between quinolone resistance and gyrA T86I mutation, tetracycline resistance and tet(O/32/O) or tet(O) genes, and in C. coli, streptomycin resistance and ant(6)-Ia gene.

CONCLUSIONS

Broilers in urban and peri‑urban Uganda are frequently colonized with antibiotic-resistant Campylobacter, highlighting the need for strengthened biosecurity and antibiotic stewardship to mitigate public health risks.