New Research Shows Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria Found in Cattle

New research has shown that there could be antimicrobial-resistant salmonella in meat animals.  Nikki Shariat, a UGA researcher, and Amy Siceloff, a first-year doctoral student in UGA’s Department of Microbiology, found that the traditional culturing methods used to treat livestock for dangerous bacteria were missing drug-resistant strains of salmonella.

This evidence could prove to be a huge issue since antibiotic-resistant salmonella can have severe health implications. The study showed that 60% of cow fecal samples contained multiple strains of salmonella, and one out of every ten samples tested positive for medication-resistant salmonella.

Tests were done on animals with different methods and the results showed that more strands of drug-resistant salmonella were wiped out.

Shariat, an assistant professor of population health in the College of Veterinary Medicine, said, “We need to know the antimicrobial resistance profiles. Of the bacteria that are present in animals. That knowledge could make us change our choice of the type of antibiotic we use to treat ill animals. It can also help us select the best antibiotic for people who get sick from eating contaminated meat.”

This research shows just how dangerous it can be to consume meat – especially when so many dangerous strains are being left behind. Traditional methods treating cleaning livestock to get rid of bad bacteria are not as effective as people want to believe. Thus, anyone who eats meat is at risk of becoming ill from it.

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