Prevalence of the CRISPR-cas system and its association with antibiotic resistance in clinical Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates

• Published in: BMC infectious diseases 2024-06, Vol.24 (1), p.554-554
• Main Authors: Kadkhoda, Hiva, Gholizadeh, Pourya, Ghotaslou, Reza, Pirzadeh, Tahereh, Ahangarzadeh Rezaee, Mohammad, Nabizadeh, Edris, Feizi, Hadi, Samadi Kafil, Hossein, Aghazadeh, Mohammad
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adaptive systems; Aminoglycoside antibiotics; Aminoglycosides; Anti-Bacterial Agents - pharmacology; Antibiotic resistance; Antibiotics; Bacteria; beta-Lactamases - genetics; Care and treatment; Complications and side effects; Correlation; CRISPR; CRISPR-Cas system; CRISPR-Cas Systems; DNA polymerase; Dosage and administration; Drug resistance; Drug resistance in microorganisms; Drug Resistance, Bacterial - genetics; E coli; Extended-spectrum β-lactamases; Female; Gene frequency; Genes; Genetic engineering; Humans; Immune system; Klebsiella; Klebsiella infections; Klebsiella Infections - epidemiology; Klebsiella Infections - microbiology; Klebsiella pneumoniae; Klebsiella pneumoniae - drug effects; Klebsiella pneumoniae - genetics; Male; Microbial Sensitivity Tests; Middle Aged; Phages; Plasmids; Prevalence; Prevention; Thermal cycling; Transposons; Virulence; β Lactamase
• ISSN: 1471-2334; 1471-2334
• DOI: 10.1186/s12879-024-09451-5

CRISPR-Cas is a prokaryotic adaptive immune system that protects bacteria and archaea against mobile genetic elements (MGEs) such as bacteriophages plasmids, and transposons. In this study, we aimed to assess the prevalence of the CRISPR-Cas systems and their association with antibiotic resistance in one of the most challenging bacterial pathogens, Klebsiella pneumoniae. A total of 105 K. pneumoniae isolates were collected from various clinical infections. Extended-spectrum β-lactamases (ESBLs) phenotypically were detected and the presence of ESBL, aminoglycoside-modifying enzymes (AME), and CRISPR-Cas system subtype genes were identified using PCR. Moreover, the diversity of the isolates was determined by enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus (ERIC)-PCR. Phenotypically, 41.9% (44/105) of the isolates were found to be ESBL producers. A significant inverse correlation existed between the subtype I-E CRISPR-Cas system's presence and ESBL production in K. pneumoniae isolates. Additionally, the frequency of the ESBL genes bla (3%), bla (12.1%), bla (51.5%), and bla (33.3%), as well as some AME genes such as aac(3)-Iva (21.2%) and ant(2'')-Ia (3%) was significantly lower in the isolates with the subtype I-E CRISPR-Cas system in comparison to CRISPR-negative isolates. There was a significant inverse correlation between the presence of ESBL and some AME genes with subtype I-E CRISPR-Cas system. The presence of the subtype I-E CRISPR-Cas system was correlated with the antibiotic-resistant gene (ARGs). The isolates with subtype I-E CRISPR-Cas system had a lower frequency of ESBL genes and some AME genes than CRISPR-negative isolates.