| Summary: | Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a global health concern. The impact of AMR on the environment is compounded by antibiotic use in agriculture specifically livestock. Insects are prevalent around livestock and their faeces. Flies are commonly found on cattle farms and mealworms are a pest associated with poultry farming.
This thesis aimed to establish whether flies and mealworms can be reservoirs or vectors for AMR in the environment. Flies were collected from two local cattle farms; bacteria were isolated from the fly guts before being tested for antibiotic sensitivity. Mealworms were reared in poultry faeces in the laboratory. Bacteria were isolated from mealworms guts at different stages in the insect’s lifecycle and tested for antibiotic sensitivity. The mealworm’s ability to acquire and lose antibiotic resistant bacteria (ARB) was also investigated and the impact of mealworms on the presence of resistance genes and the microbial community of poultry faeces was established. Both insects contained ARB in their guts and there is a possibility that ARB can be transferred through the mealworm lifecycle. Mealworms can also have an impact on the antibiotic resistance genes and the microbial community of poultry faeces.
Overall, this thesis showed that flies and mealworms can act as reservoirs for ARB in the environment, and there is the possibility of them acting as vectors although this could not be concluded here. The impacts of mealworms on poultry faeces could have an effect on the management of mealworms in poultry houses and the spread of poultry litter on arable land. This could change the way insects are viewed, meaning they could be seen as beneficial instead of as pests.
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