Establishment and multi drug resistance evolution of ST235 Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains in the intensive care unit of a Colombian hospital

• Published in: Research in microbiology 2014-12, Vol.165 (10), p.852-856
• Main Authors: Martinez, Elena, Pérez, Javier Escobar, Buelvas, Francisco, Tovar, Catalina, Vanegas, Natasha, Stokes, H.W.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Anti-Bacterial Agents - pharmacology; Antibiotic resistance; Class 1 integron; Colombia - epidemiology; Cross Infection - epidemiology; Cross Infection - microbiology; Drug Resistance, Multiple, Bacterial; Hospital acquired infections; Humans; Intensive Care Units - statistics & numerical data; IS26; Microbial Sensitivity Tests; Pseudomonas aeruginosa - classification; Pseudomonas aeruginosa - drug effects; Pseudomonas aeruginosa - genetics; Pseudomonas aeruginosa - isolation & purification; Pseudomonas aeruginosa ST235; Pseudomonas Infections - epidemiology; Pseudomonas Infections - microbiology
• ISSN: 0923-2508; 1769-7123
• DOI: 10.1016/j.resmic.2014.10.011

Drug resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa represents a therapeutic challenge. To assess the diversity of P. aeruginosa antibiotic resistant variants, isolates were recovered from hospital patients in Colombia. Thirty of 60 isolates contained class 1 integrons and five were of Sequence Type ST235 having appeared in a single intensive care unit. All five possessed an unusual integron but showed differences in gene cassette content and the presence/absence of insertion sequence IS26. This showed that differences can arise rapidly, even within a single ICU. Also, the emergence of IS26 in P. aeruginosa is contributing to the evolution of resistance in this bacterium.