Poster Presentation Australian Microbial Ecology Conference 2024

Extensive Klebsiella diversity in synanthropic wildlife (#12)

Kira Lowe 1 , Bethany Hoye 1 , Max Cummins 2 , Martina Sanderson-Smith 1 , Steven Djordjevic 2
  1. University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, Australia
  2. University of Technology Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia

Like many organisms, bacteria constantly face selective pressures that act on particular traits. However, they are also not passive actors in an evolutionary system. Where bacteria have traits that are suited to multiple host types and species, they should, theoretically, have a more extensive host range. Despite its recognition as containing many pathogens of concern, the Klebsiella genus is chronically understudied in wildlife. As such, knowledge of the diversity and population structure of Klebsiella in wildlife is largely unknown. Here, we sought to use high-resolution genomic analyses to explore the diversity of Klebsiella in an urban wildlife species, the Australian silver gull. Cloacal swabs were taken from gulls in 2019, and microbial communities were cultured on MacConkey agar to select for Enterobacteriaceae, followed by the extraction, sequencing and assembly of DNA. Using a variety of bioinformatic techniques, the species, STs and serovars of Klebsiella isolates were identified. The host range of each ST was determined using genome databases and literature. Finally, the coexistence of multiple Klebsiella STs and lineages within a bird was determined. Overall, 7 Klebsiella species were identified across 72 STs, 19 of which were novel. The vast majority of the previously described STs had previously been described in humans, although few were recorded as occurring in multiple host sources. High levels of serovar sharing were seen between ST within a species, however sharing was minimal between species and species complexes. When pooling all collection dates, two-thirds of gulls hosted at least two Klebsiella lineages, with many instances of co-carriage of multiple species and multiple STs from within a species, providing opportunities for genomic reshuffling. These results demonstrate the capacity for wildlife to host a high diversity of clinically-relevant bacteria exemplify the need to further explore the evolution of microbial communities within wildlife hosts.