Detection of unprecedented level of antibiotic resistance and identification of antibiotic resistance factors, including QRDR mutations in Escherichia coli isolated from commercial chickens from North India.

Our findings would provide evidence to the authorities for formulating effective strategies for restricting antibiotic usage as non-therapeutic agents in food animals. Occurrence of both plasmid-borne and chromosome-borne resistance towards quinolones can drive movement of resistance phenotype across bacterial species and vertical movement of resistance along the bacterial generations, respectively, which can pose mitigation challenges.