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Aeromonas has recently been recognized as an emerging human pathogen. Aeromonas- associated diarrhea is a phenomenon occurring worldwide. This study was designed to determine the prevalence, genetic diversity, antibiotic resistance, and pathogenicity of Aeromonas strains isolated from food products in Shanghai. Aeromonas isolates (n = 79) collected from food samples were analyzed using concatenated gyrB-cpn60 sequencing. The antibiotic resistance of these isolates was determined using antimicrobial susceptibility testing. Pathogenicity was assessed using β-hemolytic, extracellular protease, virulence gene detection, C. elegans liquid toxicity (LT), and cytotoxicity assays. Eight different species were identified among the 79 isolates. The most prevalent Aeromonas species were A. veronii [62 (78.5%)], A. caviae [6 (7.6%)], A. dhakensis [3 (3.8%)], and A. salmonicida [3 (3.8%)]. The Aeromonas isolates were divided into 73 sequence types (STs), of which 65 were novel. The isolates were hemolytic (45.6%) and protease-positive (81.0%). The most prevalent virulence genes were act (73.4%), fla (69.6%), aexT (36.7%), and ascV (30.4%). The results of C. elegans LT and cytotoxicity assays revealed that A. dhakensis and A. hydrophila were more virulent than A. veronii, A. caviae, and A. bivalvium. Antibiotic resistance genes [tetE, blaTEM, tetA, qnrS, aac(6)-Ib, mcr-1, and mcr- 3] were detected in the isolates. The multidrug-resistance rate of the Aeromonas isolates was 11.4%, and 93.7% of the Aeromonas isolates were resistant to cefazolin. The taxonomy, antibiotic resistance, and pathogenicity of different Aeromonas species varied. The Aeromonas isolates A. dhakensis and A. hydrophila were highly pathogenic, indicating that food-derived Aeromonas isolates are potential risks for public health and food safety. The monitoring of food quality and safety will result in better prevention and treatment strategies to control diarrhea illnesses in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study was performed to compare the genetic diversity, virulence, and antimicrobial resistance of Aeromonas strains isolated from patients and healthy individuals. A total of 38 clinical strains and 19 strains from healthy individuals were isolated from the samples collected in Ma'anshan City, Anhui Province. Their taxonomy was investigated using concatenated gyrB-cpn60 sequences, and their resistance to 12 antibiotics was evaluated. The pathogenicity of these strains was examined through beta-hemolysis, protease activity, and virulence gene assays. The 57 Aeromonas strains were divided into 55 sequence types. Of these types, 21 were novel, suggesting that their genetic diversity was high. These Aeromonas isolates could be divided into 7 species, and the positive rates of beta-hemolysis and protease activity were 49.1% and 73.7%, respectively. The detection rate of clinical patients in terms of beta-hemolysis and protease activity was higher than that of healthy individuals. Among the four most common Aeromonas strains, A. dhakensis had the highest detection rate of virulence genes. The multidrug resistance rate of the clinical isolates was much higher than that of the strains isolated from healthy individuals. The taxonomy, virulence properties, and antibiotic resistance of Aeromonas isolates from patients differ from those of the isolates from healthy individuals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]