New York City House Mice (Mus musculus) as Potential Reservoirs for Pathogenic Bacteria and Antimicrobial Resistance Determinants

House mice ( ) thrive in large urban centers worldwide. Nonetheless, little is known about the role that they may play in contributing to environmental contamination with potentially pathogenic bacteria. Here, we describe the fecal microbiome of house mice with emphasis on detection of pathogenic bacteria and antimicrobial resistance genes by molecular methods. Four hundred sixteen mice were collected from predominantly residential buildings in seven sites across New York City over a period of 13 months. 16S rRNA sequencing identified as dominant and revealed high levels of A targeted PCR screen of 11 bacteria, as indicated by 16S rRNA analyses, found that mice are carriers of several gastrointestinal disease-causing agents, including , , , and diarrheagenic Furthermore, genes mediating antimicrobial resistance to fluoroquinolones ( ) and β-lactam drugs ( and ) were widely distributed. Culture and molecular strain typing of revealed that mice harbor ribotypes associated with human disease, and screening of kidney samples demonstrated genetic evidence of pathogenic species. In concert, these findings support the need for further research into the role of house mice as potential reservoirs for human pathogens and antimicrobial resistance in the built environment. Mice are commensal pests often found in close proximity to humans, especially in urban centers. We surveyed mice from seven sites across New York City and found multiple pathogenic bacteria associated with febrile and gastrointestinal disease as well as an array of antimicrobial resistance genes.