Genomic Characterization of <i>Enterococcus casseliflavus</i> Isolated from Beef Cows and Calves

<i>Enterococcus</i> species are used as One Health indicators of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in humans, animals, and the environment. A surveillance study in beef cows and calves isolated <i>Enterococcus casseliflavus</i> along with <i>E. faecium</i>, <i>...

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Main Authors: Sani-e-Zehra Zaidi, Rahat Zaheer, Athanasios Zovoilis, Jayce Fossen, Gary Van Domselaar, Cheryl Waldner, Tim A. McAllister
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-04-01
Series:Microorganisms
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/13/4/907
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author Sani-e-Zehra Zaidi
Rahat Zaheer
Athanasios Zovoilis
Jayce Fossen
Gary Van Domselaar
Cheryl Waldner
Tim A. McAllister
author_facet Sani-e-Zehra Zaidi
Rahat Zaheer
Athanasios Zovoilis
Jayce Fossen
Gary Van Domselaar
Cheryl Waldner
Tim A. McAllister
author_sort Sani-e-Zehra Zaidi
collection DOAJ
description <i>Enterococcus</i> species are used as One Health indicators of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in humans, animals, and the environment. A surveillance study in beef cows and calves isolated <i>Enterococcus casseliflavus</i> along with <i>E. faecium</i>, <i>E. faecalis</i>, and <i>E. hirae</i>. Given the high prevalence of <i>E. casseliflavus</i>, we elected to characterize this species to better understand its role in the antimicrobial resistance of enterococci in cows and calves. Almost 12% of <i>E. casseliflavus</i> isolates exhibited multidrug resistance with the majority being resistant to lincomycin (99%), followed by quinupristin–dalfopristin (34%), ciprofloxacin (9.6%), tylosin (4.5%), erythromycin (2.7%), tetracycline (1.8%), tigecycline (1.5%), daptomycin (0.6%), streptomycin (0.3%), and kanamycin (0.3%). All <i>E. casseliflavus</i> were susceptible to chloramphenicol, penicillin, streptomycin, nitrofurantoin, gentamicin, and linezolid. Whole genome antimicrobial resistance gene profiling identified <i>vanC</i>-type intrinsic vancomycin resistance genes in all <i>E. casseliflavus</i>, with the <i>vanC4XYT</i> gene cluster being dominant (67%) followed by <i>vanC2XYT</i> (31%) and <i>vanC3XYT</i> (1.5%). Resistance genes for erythromycin (<i>ermB</i>) and tetracycline (<i>tetM</i>) were rarely identified (2.1% and 1.2%, respectively) within <i>E. casseliflavus</i> genomes. No resistance genes were identified to explain either the quinupristin–dalfopristin or ciprofloxacin resistance in these isolates. A core genome phylogenetic tree revealed two clades that exhibited no distinct association with the age of the host, time of sample collection, or the farm sampled. The open nature of the <i>E. casseliflavus</i> pan-genome highlighted its intraspecies diversity. These findings suggest that <i>E. casseliflavus</i> is likely a low-risk species in terms of contributing to antimicrobial resistance in the cow–calf sector.
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spelling doaj-art-c9f0d24103e94e22b2d4b040088a3c0e2025-08-20T03:13:45ZengMDPI AGMicroorganisms2076-26072025-04-0113490710.3390/microorganisms13040907Genomic Characterization of <i>Enterococcus casseliflavus</i> Isolated from Beef Cows and CalvesSani-e-Zehra Zaidi0Rahat Zaheer1Athanasios Zovoilis2Jayce Fossen3Gary Van Domselaar4Cheryl Waldner5Tim A. McAllister6Department of Biochemistry and Medical Genetics, University of Manitoba, 745 Bannatyne Avenue, Winnipeg, MB R3E 3P5, CanadaLethbridge Research and Development Centre, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Lethbridge, AB T1J 4B1, CanadaDepartment of Biochemistry and Medical Genetics, University of Manitoba, 745 Bannatyne Avenue, Winnipeg, MB R3E 3P5, CanadaLarge Animal Clinical Sciences, Western College of Veterinary Medicine, 52 Campus Dr., University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK S7N 5B4, CanadaNational Microbiology Laboratory, Public Health Agency of Canada, Government of Canada, 1015 Arlington Street, Winnipeg, MB R3E 3R2, CanadaLarge Animal Clinical Sciences, Western College of Veterinary Medicine, 52 Campus Dr., University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK S7N 5B4, CanadaLethbridge Research and Development Centre, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Lethbridge, AB T1J 4B1, Canada<i>Enterococcus</i> species are used as One Health indicators of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in humans, animals, and the environment. A surveillance study in beef cows and calves isolated <i>Enterococcus casseliflavus</i> along with <i>E. faecium</i>, <i>E. faecalis</i>, and <i>E. hirae</i>. Given the high prevalence of <i>E. casseliflavus</i>, we elected to characterize this species to better understand its role in the antimicrobial resistance of enterococci in cows and calves. Almost 12% of <i>E. casseliflavus</i> isolates exhibited multidrug resistance with the majority being resistant to lincomycin (99%), followed by quinupristin–dalfopristin (34%), ciprofloxacin (9.6%), tylosin (4.5%), erythromycin (2.7%), tetracycline (1.8%), tigecycline (1.5%), daptomycin (0.6%), streptomycin (0.3%), and kanamycin (0.3%). All <i>E. casseliflavus</i> were susceptible to chloramphenicol, penicillin, streptomycin, nitrofurantoin, gentamicin, and linezolid. Whole genome antimicrobial resistance gene profiling identified <i>vanC</i>-type intrinsic vancomycin resistance genes in all <i>E. casseliflavus</i>, with the <i>vanC4XYT</i> gene cluster being dominant (67%) followed by <i>vanC2XYT</i> (31%) and <i>vanC3XYT</i> (1.5%). Resistance genes for erythromycin (<i>ermB</i>) and tetracycline (<i>tetM</i>) were rarely identified (2.1% and 1.2%, respectively) within <i>E. casseliflavus</i> genomes. No resistance genes were identified to explain either the quinupristin–dalfopristin or ciprofloxacin resistance in these isolates. A core genome phylogenetic tree revealed two clades that exhibited no distinct association with the age of the host, time of sample collection, or the farm sampled. The open nature of the <i>E. casseliflavus</i> pan-genome highlighted its intraspecies diversity. These findings suggest that <i>E. casseliflavus</i> is likely a low-risk species in terms of contributing to antimicrobial resistance in the cow–calf sector.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/13/4/907antimicrobial resistance<i>Enterococcus casseliflavus</i>whole genome sequencingpan-genomecow–calf system
spellingShingle Sani-e-Zehra Zaidi
Rahat Zaheer
Athanasios Zovoilis
Jayce Fossen
Gary Van Domselaar
Cheryl Waldner
Tim A. McAllister
Genomic Characterization of <i>Enterococcus casseliflavus</i> Isolated from Beef Cows and Calves
Microorganisms
antimicrobial resistance
<i>Enterococcus casseliflavus</i>
whole genome sequencing
pan-genome
cow–calf system
title Genomic Characterization of <i>Enterococcus casseliflavus</i> Isolated from Beef Cows and Calves
title_full Genomic Characterization of <i>Enterococcus casseliflavus</i> Isolated from Beef Cows and Calves
title_fullStr Genomic Characterization of <i>Enterococcus casseliflavus</i> Isolated from Beef Cows and Calves
title_full_unstemmed Genomic Characterization of <i>Enterococcus casseliflavus</i> Isolated from Beef Cows and Calves
title_short Genomic Characterization of <i>Enterococcus casseliflavus</i> Isolated from Beef Cows and Calves
title_sort genomic characterization of i enterococcus casseliflavus i isolated from beef cows and calves
topic antimicrobial resistance
<i>Enterococcus casseliflavus</i>
whole genome sequencing
pan-genome
cow–calf system
url https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/13/4/907
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