Effects of Kanamycin Administration to Poultry on the Interspecies Transmission of Drug-Resistant Salmonella

Abstract Three experiments were conducted to assess the relationship between antibiotic administration to poultry and the transmission of drug-resistant Salmonella through a simulated food chain. Poults were inoculated per os with either multiply drug-resistant Escherichia coli and drug-sensitive S. typhimurium or with multiply drug-resistant S. typhimurium. One-half of the poults inoculated with drug-sensitive S. typhimurium and all poults given drug-resistant S. typhimurium received kanamycin in their drinking water. Liver tissue from these poults was incorporated into diets fed to rats, half of which were treated with kanamycin. Antibiotic administration to the poults was associated with a significantly (P