We conducted a pilot study to assess microbiological safety of chicken litter, an affordable organic and main fertilizer used in Cameroon and worldwide. A convenience sampling of 26 farms was done and a questionnaire was administered. Samples of litter were aseptically collected. E. coli and Salmonella spp. were isolated using CLSI standards. Antibiotic susceptibility testing was performed using the disc diffusion method and a micro broth dilution method for colistin. In broiler farms, 90% of participating farmers gave antibiotic prophylaxis. The prevalence of E. coli and Salmonella spp. was 59.1% and 15.5%, respectively. All E. coli isolates were multidrug resistant as well as 36.4% for Salmonella spp. No resistance was found against cefepime and imipenem. All Salmonella spp. tested were found sensitive to colistin while 26.7% of E. coli spp. were colistin resistant. Contamination of chicken litter may be an underestimated source of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) transmission towards animals, humans and the environment with multidrug resistant E. coli and Salmonella spp. This shows the need and opportunity for a One Health approach in AMR surveillance and control in Cameroon. Continued surveillance in chicken litter would enable monitoring of AMR risks and trends.

中文翻译：

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喀麦隆市区鸡粪肥料的微生物污染及耐药性威胁

我们进行了一项初步研究，以评估鸡粪的微生物学安全性，该鸡粪是喀麦隆乃至全世界使用的一种经济实惠的有机肥料和主要肥料。方便抽样了26个农场，并进行了问卷调查。无菌收集垃圾样品。大肠杆菌和沙门氏菌属。使用CLSI标准进行隔离。使用圆盘扩散法和微发酵液稀释法对大肠菌素进行了药敏试验。在肉鸡场中，有90％的参与农场主进行了抗生素预防。大肠杆菌和沙门氏菌的流行。分别为59.1％和15.5％。所有大肠杆菌分离物均具有多重耐药性，其中36.4％沙门氏菌属。没有发现对头孢吡肟和亚胺培南有抗药性。所有的沙门氏菌属。被测试者对大肠菌素敏感，而大肠杆菌菌种占26.7％。对大肠菌素有抵抗力。鸡砂的污染可能是低抗药性的大肠埃希菌和沙门氏菌对动物，人类和环境的抗药性（AMR）传播来源。这表明喀麦隆在AMR监视和控制中采用“一种健康”方法的必要性和机会。继续对鸡粪进行监测可监测AMR风险和趋势。