Genotyping and antimicrobial susceptibility of Aeromonas veronii isolated from aquatic animals in Sichuan, China
Research article published in Antonie van Leeuwenhoek (2025)
Abstract
As one of the motile species of Aeromonas, Aeromonas veronii is widely distributed in aquatic ecosystems and has been determined as an important pathogen for aquatic in addition to terrestrial animals and humans. In this study, we collected 34 A. veronii isolates from aquatic animals in Sichuan, China. Six housekeeping genes (gyrB, groL, gltA, metG, ppsA and recA) were used for multilocus sequence typing. The results showed that the isolates had high diversity, of which 21 subtypes could be divided into two groups. The group B consisted of 15 new sequence types (ST861-875), and the group A was more closely related to strains from water. Besides, the antibiotic susceptibility of each isolate was determined using the disc diffusion method. Discs of 17 antimicrobial agents were used, including penicillin, cefaclor, cefotaxime, meropenem, amoxicillin, kanamycin, gentamycin, amikacin, neomycin, ciprofloxacin, enrofloxacin, tetracycline, doxycycline, florfenicol, cotrimoxazole, rifampicin, and azithromycin. Most isolates showed resistance to 17 antibiotics such as penicillin, enrofloxacin, and doxycycline. Moreover, high-throughput qPCR was used to detect ARGs of the isolates. A total of 62 ARGs were detected positively based on 95 ARGs detection, in which class aminoglycosides, beta-lactams, and multiple drugs were the most prevalent. Our study indicated that different genotypes showed different distribution of ARPs and ARGs. To our knowledge, this is the first report of molecular subtyping and antibiotic resistance profiles in A. veronii from aquatic animals in Sichuan, these data provide a valuable referee for the prevention and control of corresponding diseases.
Abstract sourced from PubMed (NCBI) for the cited record. See the original publication for the authoritative version.
Summary
Peer-reviewed research on antimicrobial resistance relevant to medicinal leech therapy and associated bacterial flora. Indexed in PubMed and verified against the NCBI record.
Why This Matters for Hirudotherapy
This microbiology study collected 34 Aeromonas veronii isolates from aquatic animals in Sichuan, China, applied multilocus sequence typing across six housekeeping genes, and profiled antibiotic susceptibility against 17 agents plus antibiotic-resistance genes by high-throughput qPCR; it reports high genotypic diversity (21 subtypes, including 15 new sequence types) and that most isolates were resistant to many of the tested antibiotics, with 62 of 95 surveyed resistance genes detected. For hirudotherapy this matters because Aeromonas species are the principal gut symbionts of the medicinal leech and the organism most often implicated in post-leech-application wound infections, so resistance and genotype data inform which prophylactic antibiotics may fail and underline why antimicrobial cover (e.g., a fluoroquinolone) is recommended around leech therapy. Honest caveat: these isolates came from aquatic-animal sources rather than clinical leech-associated infections, and a resistance survey describes laboratory susceptibility patterns only — it does not establish clinical infection rates or guide therapy for any specific patient.
Citation
Genotyping and antimicrobial susceptibility of Aeromonas veronii isolated from aquatic animals in Sichuan, China.
Peng et al. · Antonie van Leeuwenhoek, 2025
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