{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,23]],"date-time":"2026-10-23T20:37:13Z","timestamp":1792787833993,"version":"4.5.0"},"reference-count":35,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"3","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2024,3,19]],"date-time":"2024-03-19T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1710806400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia","award":["RSP2024R466"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["RSP2024R466"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["TropicalMed"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Introduction: Raw milk may contain pathogenic microorganisms harmful to humans, e.g., multidrug-resistant Escherichia coli non-O157:H7, which can cause severe colitis, hemolytic uremia, and meningitis in children. No studies are available on the prevalence of Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC O157:H7) in sick or healthy dairy animals in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province of Pakistan. Aim: This study aimed to isolate, characterize, and detect antibiotic resistance in STEC non-O157:H7 from unpasteurized milk of dairy bovines in this province. Materials and Methods: We collected raw milk samples (n = 800) from dairy farms, street vendors, and milk shops from different parts of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province. E. coli was isolated from these samples followed by latex agglutination tests for serotyping. The detection of STEC was conducted phenotypically and confirmed by the detection of virulence genes genotypically. An antibiogram of STEC isolates was performed against 12 antibiotics using the disc diffusion method. Results: A total of 321 (40.12%) samples were found to be positive for E. coli in this study. These samples were processed for the presence of four virulence genes (Stx1, Stx2, ehxA, eae). Forty samples (5.0%) were STEC-positive. Of these, 38%, 25%, 19%, and 18% were positive for Stx1, Stx2, ehxA, and eae, respectively. Genotypically, we found that 1.37% of STEC isolates produced extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL) and contained the blaCTX M gene. Resistance to various antibiotics ranged from 18% to 77%. Conclusion: This study highlights the risk of virulent and multidrug-resistant STEC non-O157:H7 in raw milk and the need for proper quality surveillance and assurance plans to mitigate the potential public health threat.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/tropicalmed9030064","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2024,3,20]],"date-time":"2024-03-20T05:56:07Z","timestamp":1710914167000},"page":"64","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":20,"title":["Multiple-Drug Resistant Shiga Toxin-Producing E. coli in Raw Milk of Dairy Bovine"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"9","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-9622-5217","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Safir","family":"Ullah","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Zoology, Faculty of Biological Science, Quaid-e-Azam University, Islamabad 45320, Pakistan"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Saeed Ul Hassan","family":"Khan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Zoology, Faculty of Biological Science, Quaid-e-Azam University, Islamabad 45320, Pakistan"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Muhammad Jamil","family":"Khan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Zoology, Faculty of Biological Science, Quaid-e-Azam University, Islamabad 45320, Pakistan"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Baharullah","family":"Khattak","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Microbiology, Kohat University of Science and Technology, Kohat 26000, Pakistan"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-4554-7427","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Fozia","family":"Fozia","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biochemistry, KMU Institute of Dental Sciences, Kohat 26000, Pakistan"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-9139-1611","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Ijaz","family":"Ahmad","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Chemistry, Kohat University of Sciences & Technology, Kohat 26000, Pakistan"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-8330-6990","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Mohammad Ahmad","family":"Wadaan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Zoology Department, College of Science, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2455, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-9891-2443","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Muhammad Farooq","family":"Khan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Zoology Department, College of Science, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2455, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Almohannad","family":"Baabbad","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Zoology Department, College of Science, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2455, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-7781-3080","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Sagar M.","family":"Goyal","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN 55455, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2024,3,19]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"598","DOI":"10.1128\/JCM.36.2.598-602.1998","article-title":"Detection and characterization of Shigatoxigenic Escherichia coli by using multiplex PCR assays for stx1, stx2, eaeA, enterohemorrhagic E. coli hlyA, rfbO111, and rfbO157","volume":"36","author":"Paton","year":"1998","journal-title":"J. Clin. 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