Assessment of conjugal transfer of antibiotic resistance genes in Salmonella Typhimurium exposed to bile salts

This study was designed to evaluate the transfer potential of antibiotic resistance genes in antibiotic-resistant Salmonella Typhimurium (S. Typhimurium(R)) in the presence of bile salts. The resistance of S. Typhimurium(R) to ampicillin, kanamycin, and tetracycline was increased by 64-, 64-, and 512-fold, respectively. The highest transfer frequency from S. Typhimurium(R) to Escherichia coli was observed at the bile salt concentration of 160 μg/ml (3.8 × 10(-3) transferrants/cells). The expression of traJ and traY was suppressed in S. Typhimurium(R) by bile salt. This study provides useful information for understanding the conjugative transfer of antibiotic resistance genes in S. Typhimurium under intestinal conditions.