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. 1969 Nov;18(5):918–924. doi: 10.1128/am.18.5.918-924.1969

Incidence of Infectious Drug Resistance Among Lactose-Fermenting Bacteria Isolated from Raw and Treated Sewage

Alton B Sturtevant Jr 1, Thomas W Feary 1
PMCID: PMC378114  PMID: 5370461

Abstract

Raw and treated sewage samples were examined for antibiotic-resistant, lactose-fermenting bacteria. Approximately 1% of the total lactose-fermenting bacteria were multiply resistant. Of these organisms, 50% were capable of transferring all or part of their resistance to a drug-sensitive recipient. Only 43% of those isolated on media containing a single antibiotic were capable of resistance transfer, whereas 57% of those recovered on multiple antibiotic plates transferred resistance. R factors conferring resistance to chloramphenicol, streptomycin, and tetracycline; streptomycin and tetracycline; and ampicillin, streptomycin, and tetracycline accounted for 22, 19, and 15%, respectively, of those identified. The data indicate a significant level of infectious drug resistance among the intestinal bacteria of the urban population.

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Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

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