Colistin Resistance in Algeria’s Poultry Farms: A Mini Review
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Abstract
Colistin resistance has become an important veterinary and One Health concern because mobile colistin resistance genes have emerged and spread in food-producing animals. The present study aimed to report colistin resistance in Algerian poultry, poultry-associated environments, and chicken meat. PubMed was used as the primary bibliographic database for publications from 1 January 2015 to 15 September 2026. The reference lists of eligible studies were checked, and relevant publisher and journal websites were examined. Eleven studies met the final eligibility criteria. The available evidence indicated that colistin resistance and mobile colistin resistance genes, particularly mcr-1, have been documented in diseased poultry, apparently healthy poultry, poultry-farm environments, and retail chicken meat in Algeria. The mcr-5 gene has been reported in apparently healthy poultry, while some studies have documented phenotypic colistin resistance without confirming mcr-1. In avian pathogenic Escherichia coli, colistin resistance and mcr-1 were reported alongside multidrug-resistance and virulence-associated markers. However, substantial heterogeneity in sampling populations, study designs, geographical coverage, and susceptibility-testing methods limited the ability to estimate a national prevalence or infer transmission direction between poultry, food, and environmental compartments.
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