Metagenomic comparison of the faecal and environmental resistome on Irish commercial pig farms with and without zinc oxide and antimicrobial usage.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Antimicrobials and heavy metals such as zinc oxide (ZnO) have been commonly used on Irish commercial pig farms for a 2-week period post-weaning to help prevent infection. In 2022, the prophylactic use of antimicrobials and ZnO was banned within the European Union due to concerns associated with the emergence of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and contamination of the environment with heavy metals. In this study, faecal and environmental samples were taken from piglets during the weaning period from ten commercial farms, of which five farms used antimicrobial or ZnO prophylaxis (AB-ZnO farms) and five which had not used antimicrobials or ZnO for the previous 3 years (AB-ZnO free farms). A total of 50 samples were compared using a metagenomic approach.

Results

The re

SUBMITTER: Ekhlas D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10712031 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature