Acta Vet. Brno 2026, 95: 71-84
Molecular surveillance of antimicrobial resistance in Bacillus cereus sensu lato: A proposed conceptual framework in the One Health context
Bacillus cereus sensu lato (s.l.) is a One Health-relevant bacterial group linking human and veterinary medicine with food safety and the environment. Besides causing foodborne intoxications and opportunistic extraintestinal infections, B. cereus shows inherent non-susceptibility to a number of β-lactams and carries a range of acquired antimicrobial resistance (AMR) determinants. This review summarises knowledge on AMR mechanisms in B. cereus s.l., critically evaluates phenotypic and molecular approaches for detection, and proposes a conceptual framework for molecular AMR monitoring. Phenotypic testing of antimicrobial susceptibility remains the reference standard because it directly measures expressed resistance. PCR-based methods, particularly quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR), support these assays by enabling rapid, target-specific screening for predefined resistance genes in clinical, food and environmental samples and, when appropriately calibrated, by quantifying copies of AMR genes. Within this context, we outline a molecular monitoring framework that organises key AMR targets into two sector-specific panels: (i) a clinical panel focused on detecting determinants with direct therapeutic relevance and sentinel genes affecting last-resort agents, and (ii) a One Health panel designed for monitoring AMR reservoirs and selection pressure in the food chain and the environment. Because the limited multiplexing capacity of standard qPCR platforms requires running several separate reactions to cover all relevant targets, we discuss high-multiplex ligation-based technologies, exemplified by Multiple Oligonucleotide Ligation PCR (MOL-PCR). Drawing on validated applications of MOL-PCR in other bacterial species, we propose its use as a strategic, yet currently conceptual, high-multiplex tool to support integrated molecular AMR surveillance for B. cereus s.l. across One Health sectors.
Keywords
Food safety, genotyping, MOL-PCR, antimicrobial resistance genes.
Funding
This work was funded by the National Agency for Agricultural Research at the Ministry of Agriculture of the Czech Republic, project no. QK22010086.
