Team discovers how gene resists antibiotic drugs

Feb 22, 2023

Researchers at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) have discovered how a previously overlooked gene is involved in antimicrobial resistance—a growing global issue that threatens the health and welfare of both humans and animals.

The gene encodes for an enzyme named EstT and is capable of “turning off” or inactivating macrolides, a class of antibiotic drugs commonly used to treat disease in cattle and other livestock.

The researchers’ findings were published online last week in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), a highly cited multidisciplinary scientific journal.

Tylosin, tilmicosin and tildipirosin are some antibiotics classed as macrolides. Veterinarians rely on these drugs to treat illnesses in cattle such as bovine respiratory disease and liver abscesses as well as other diseases in livestock and companion animals.

With this discovery, veterinarians will know “there’s a possibility that the drug will not work because of the presence of the gene,” said Dr. Poonam Dhindwal (PhD) the paper’s lead author and a post-doctoral fellow at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM).

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Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.