Multidrug-Resistant Bacteria in Wildlife: A “One Health” Approach to Surveillance, Transmission and Control
A special issue of Pathogens (ISSN 2076-0817). This special issue belongs to the section "Bacterial Pathogens".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 June 2025 | Viewed by 3617
Special Issue Editor
Interests: antimicrobial resistance; wildlife; “One Health”; Betalactamases
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Antimicrobial resistance is a global problem that must be tackled with a comprehensive "One Health" approach, i.e., taking into account the fact that human health should not be dissociated from animal and environmental health.
Wildlife has been identified as one of the drivers of the dissemination of MDR bacteria and/or genes conferring resistance to clinically important antimicrobials.
Wild animals can recirculate MDR bacteria into human and domestic animal populations. Especially important are wild birds that use livestock facilities for food and shelter, as they could contribute to the spread of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria to farm and companion animals.
On the other hand, fecal contamination of the environment by wild birds could also play a relevant role in the transmission of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria to humans via livestock or water supplies.
Antibiotic resistance may also be a good indicator of humankind’s influence on wildlife’s exposure to bacteria. Animals in the wild can acquire these bacteria from treated water, farms, landfills, etc., with wild birds being one of the most studied groups in relation to this issue.
Animals admitted to wildlife recovery centers (WRCs) may harbor MDR bacteria and also zoonotic pathogens. This could pose a health risk to workers involved in animal rescue or research. Since most animals are intended to be returned to the wild after a few days or weeks, this could also pose a problem with respect to the spread of resistance in natural environments.
Although, theoretically, wild animals are not exposed to clinically relevant antibiotics, the detection of MDR strains in wildlife is increasing considerably, reinforcing the importance of and need for focused studies on this topic. In addition, monitoring these bacteria in wildlife has become an important surveillance tool since it could reflect antimicrobial resistance in strains isolated from humans and domestic animals.
The main objective of this Special Issue is to improve our understanding of the role of wildlife in the dissemination of multidrug-resistant bacteria in the framework of the “One Health” approach. For this, submissions of research manuscripts focused on the role of wildlife as reservoirs and transmitters of multidrug-resistant bacteria and analyses of how wildlife acquires MDR bacteria or genes are welcomed. Review manuscripts on this topic are also welcomed.
Dr. María Teresa Tejedor-Junco
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Pathogens is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- multidrug resistance
- wildlife
- “One Health”
Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue
- Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
- Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
- Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
- External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
- e-Book format: Special Issues with more than 10 articles can be published as dedicated e-books, ensuring wide and rapid dissemination.
Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.
