Considering the serious threat to food safety and public
health posed by pathogens with colistin resistance, colistin was
banned as a growth promoter in 2017 in China. In recent years,
the resistance rate of Escherichia coli isolated from animal
intestines or feces to colistin has decreased. However, the prevalence
and characteristics of the mcr-1 gene in retail meat have
not been well explored. Herein, 106 mcr-1-negative and 16 mcr-
1-positive E. coli isolates were randomly recovered from 120 retail
meat samples and screened using colistin. The 106 E. coli
isolates showed maximum resistance to sulfafurazole (73.58%)
and tetracycline (62.26%) but susceptibility to colistin (0.00%).
All 16 mcr-1-positive E. coli isolates showed resistance to colistin,
were extended spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL)-positive
and exhibited complex multidrug resistance (MDR). For these
16 isolates, 17 plasmid replicons and 42 antibiotic resistance
genes were identified, and at least 7 antibiotic resistance genes
were found in each isolate. Acquired disinfectant resistance
genes were identified in 75.00% (12/16) of the isolates. Furthermore,
comparative genomic and phylogenetic analysis results indicated that these 16 mcr-1-positive E. coli isolates
and the most prevalent mcr-1-harboring IncI2 plasmid in
this study were closely related to other previously reported
mcr-1-positive E. coli isolates and the IncI2 plasmid, respectively,
showing their wide distribution. Taken together, our
findings showed that retail meat products were a crucial reservoir
of mcr-1 during the colistin ban period and should
be continuously monitored.
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