A micro-dilution method for detecting oxytetracycline-resistant bacteria in marine sediments from salmon and mussel aquaculture sites and an urbanized harbour in Atlantic Canada

A micro-dilution technique with changes in optical density (OD) used to measure bacterial growth over 72 h in culture media containing 0, 5, 10, 20, 40, 80 and 160 μg OTC (oxytetracycline) ml−1 was applied to determine growth inhibition (GI) in mixed bacterial strains cultured from samples of marine sediments and salmon feed pellets. Growth of control cultures (Aeromonas salmonicida) was inhibited at all OTC concentrations. Some feed pellet samples and under-cage sediments from salmon aquaculture sites in the Bay of Fundy showed GI up to ≥160 μg OTC ml−1. Lower values (40 to 80 μg OTC ml−1) occurred in subsurface (5–18 cm) sediments, >100 m from salmon pens and adjacent to sewage outfalls in Halifax Harbour. GI values <20 μg OTC ml−1 in sediment from reference locations in Halifax Harbour and mussel aquaculture sites are considered to reflect natural background levels for OTC resistance.