Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria in Hydroponic Lettuce in Retail: A Comparative Survey.

ABSTRACT: Hydroponic produce is gaining popularity due to its suitability for urban agriculture. The general public also considers that hydroponic produce is free from microbiological contamination. In this study, we compared the frequency and abundance of tetracycline-resistant and sulphadiazine-resistant bacteria and the minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) of these isolates in conventional, organic, and hydroponic lettuce sold in retail. We also determined the frequency of samples carrying tetB, tetX, sul1, sul2, and int1 genes by PCR and further quantified the copy number of tetX, sul1, and int1 genes in samples positive for these genes using qPCR. As expected, the number of resistant bacteria and the MICs of these isolates were lowest in hydroponic lettuce and highest in organic lettuce. All

SUBMITTER: Lam KL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7554963 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature