Molecular Characterization of Salmonella spp. Isolates from Wild Colombian Babilla ( Caiman crocodilus fuscus ) Isolated In Situ

enterica is a pathogen capable of colonizing various environments, including the intestinal tract of different animals such as mammals, birds, and reptiles, which can act as carriers. infection induces different clinical diseases, gastroenteritis being the most common, which in some cases, can evolve to septicemia and meningitis. Reptiles and amphibians have been reported as a reservoir of , and transmission of the pathogen to humans has been documented. This study aimed to determine the presence of virulence genes and characterize the genotypic antibiotic resistance profile in strains isolated from obtained in situ (natural habitat) in Prado, Tolima, Colombia in a previous study and stored in a strain bank in our laboratory. Fifteen strains were evaluated through endpoint PCR to determine the presence of resistance genes and virulence genes. The genes , , and were detected in all the strains that confer resistance to ampicillin, streptomycin, and sulfamethoxazole, as well as the virulence genes , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , and , indicating the possible role of babilla ( ) as a carrier of multidrug-resistant bacteria.