ARS | Publication request: Antimicrobial Resistance and the Microflora of the Gastrointestinal Tract

Submitted to: Preharvest and Postharvest Food Safety
Publication Type: Book/Chapter
Publication Acceptance Date: September 30, 2003
Publication Date: May 3, 2004
Citation: Poole, T.L., Genovese, K.J., Beier, R.C., Callaway, T.R., Bischoff, K.M. 2004. Antimicrobial resistance and the microflora of the gastrointestinal tract. In: Beier, R.C., Suresh, D.P., Phillips, T.D., Ziprin, R.L., editors. Preharvest and Postharvest Food Safety: Contemporary Issues and Future Directions. Ames, IA: Blackwell Publishing Professional. p. 213-225.

Technical Abstract: To maintain a safe food supply, pre-harvest and post-harvest management practices are implemented to reduce bacterial contamination of animal products. This often includes the use of antimicrobials. Pre-harvest food safety management starts on the farm and focuses on practices that improve animal health and performance, and benefits the producer by minimizing economic losses due to disease. Unfortunately, the emergence of antimicrobial resistance in enteric pathogens of food animals is a by-product of these practices. This book chapter reviews the ecology of antimicrobial resistance as it pertains to the microflora of the gastrointestinal tract of food producing animals. This includes emphasis on the issues of clonal expansion and dissemination of resistant bacterial species.