LAUSR

Abstract Campylobacter spp. are the leading cause of human gastroenteritis worldwide. RE-CmeABC is a newly identified resistance-enhancing multidrug efflux pump of Campylobacter spp. (C. spp.) that confers high-level resistance to fluoroquinolones, phenicols, macrolides, and tetracyclines (TETs), all of which are critical drugs in both human and veterinary medicine. In this study, we analyzed the presence and antimicrobial susceptibility of RE-cmeABC-positive Campylobacter isolates of food-animal origin from three representative regions (Shandong, Shanghai, and Guangdong) in China over three successive years, from 2014 to 2016. A total of 1088 Campylobacter isolates (931 C. coli and 157 C. jejuni) were recovered from the RE-cmeABC screening. We detected 122 (11.2%) RE-cmeABC-positive isolates of chicken origin, including 111 (70.7%) C. jejuni and 11 (1.2%) C. coli. This multidrug efflux pump is more prevalent among C. jejuni than C. coli. The level of resistance was significantly different in 111 RE-cmeABC-positive C. jejuni versus 46 RE-cmeABC-negative C. jejuni for florfenicol, clindamycin, and erythromycin (P