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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Microbiol.
Sec. Food Microbiology
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2025.1543511
This article is part of the Research Topic Antimicrobial Resistance: Tracking and Tackling in the Food Chain View all articles
Comparative Genomic Analysis of Food-Animal-Derived and Human-Derived Clostridium perfringens Isolates from Markets in Shandong, China
Provisionally accepted
Xinyang Zhu 1 Yucui Huang 1 Yuxia Shi 1 Xiaojie Gao 1 Duanduan Chen 1 Cheng Liu 1
Shengliang Cao 1 Xijuan Xue 2
Yubao Li 1*- 1 Liaocheng University, Liaocheng, China
- 2 Shandong Sinder Technology Co., Ltd., Shandong, China, Liaocheng, Shandong Province, China
Clostridium perfringens (C. perfringens) is a foodborne pathogen that poses a significant threat to both animal husbandry and public health. In this study, 27 C. perfringens strains were isolated from animal samples and animal-derived food products. Antibiotics resistances among the isolates were phenotypically and genotypically analyzed and found 24 of them (88.9%, 24/27) were identified as multidrug-resistant (MDR). Whole genome sequencing (WGS) analysis revealed that 13 strains belonged to known sequence types (ST), and the remaining strains represented 10 new STs. By analysis in combination with data of 141 C. perfringens isolates from the database, it was implied that ST221, ST72 and ST370 were present in both animal-derived and human-derived C. perfringens.It is worth noting that 108 out of 168 strains of C. perfringens (64.3%, 108/168) were found to carry prophages, which were found more prevalent in human-derived C. perfringens isolates. Pan-genome and phylogenetic analysis of 168 C. perfringens strains indicated that C. perfringens possesses an open pan-genome with genetic diversity. This study provides genomic insights into C. perfringens from food animals and humans, shedding light on the importance for monitoring the C. perfringens in livestock in China for better public health.
Keywords: Clostridium perfringens1, Whole Genome Sequencing2, multidrug-resistant bacteria3, toxinotypes4, pangenome analysis5
Received: 11 Dec 2024; Accepted: 05 Mar 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Zhu, Huang, Shi, Gao, Chen, Liu, Cao, Xue and Li. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Yubao Li, Liaocheng University, Liaocheng, China
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