Two new dfr genes in trimethoprim-resistant integron-negative Escherichia coli isolates

Two Escherichia coli isolates resistant to trimethoprim but negative for integrons carried two new resistance genes, dfrA24 and dfrA26, remotely similar to one another and to the cassette-independent genes dfrA8 and dfrA9. The dfrA24 gene was not associated with known mobile elements, while dfrA26 was associated with the CR1 common region.     

The prevalence of trimethoprim-resistance-conferring dihydrofolate reductase genes in urinary isolates of Escherichia coli in Korea

One-hundred and twenty-two urinary isolates of Escherichia coli were studied for trimethoprim resistance. Seventy-seven (63.1%) of the 122 isolates were found to be resistant to trimethoprim. Of the 77 trimethoprim-resistant isolates, 75 dfr genes were detected in 72 isolates as follows: the dfrA17 gene was the most prevalent, being found in 27 isolates, followed by dfrA12 in 26, dfrA1 in 15, dfrA5 in four and dfrA7 in three. Southern blot and PCR mapping analysis revealed that all of the dfrA17, dfrA12, dfrA5 and dfrA7 genes were located on class 1 integrons. The dfrA1 gene inserted as a gene cassette in class 1 integrons was found in 10 of 15 isolates, and the intI2 gene of Tn7 was detected in two out of five isolates. In conjugation experiments, the dfr genes inserted in class 1 integrons were transferred to a recipient E. coli in 32 (42.7%) of the 75 dfr genes. In conclusion, the dfrA17 and dfrA12 genes were the most prevalent genes responsible for trimethoprim resistance in urinary tract isolates of E. coli from Korea and the dfr genes inserted in integrons are more widespread than those that are not related to gene cassettes.     

南京地区鲍曼不动杆菌中整合子流行现状及携带的耐药基因分析

目的研究南京地区鲍曼不动杆菌中整合子的流行现状、与耐药的相关性及携带的耐药基因。方法收集106株南京地区鲍曼不动杆菌,纸片扩散法测定其药敏情况;PCR-限制性片段长度多态性(RFLP)筛查整合子并分类;PCR法扩增整合子可变区;联合RFLP和DNA测序技术分析整合子携带的耐药基因。结果52.8%(56/106)鲍曼不动杆菌检出整合子,PCR—RFLP结果显示均为Ⅰ类整合子;94.6%(53/56)整合子阳性菌株可变区扩增阳性,扩增片段大小为0.15～2.8kb;共检出7种不同的可变区,含有编码对氨基糖苷类抗生素(aadA1、aadA2、aadA5、aadB、aacA4)、磺胺类抗菌药(dfrⅫ、dfr17)、β内酰胺类抗生素(bla_(axa-10))和氯霉素(catB-like、catB8)耐药的基因及2个功能不清的开放阅读框(orfF、orfI);发现1例新型基因盒组合形式orfI—aadA1,GenBank基因号为DQ092497。结论Ⅰ类整合子广泛存在于南京地区鲍曼不动杆菌中;整合子与鲍曼不动杆菌的耐药和多重耐药有关;鲍曼不动杆菌整合子主要携带氨基糖苷类耐药基因。     

Prevalence and characteristics of lactose non-fermenting Escherichia coli in urinary isolates

Recently, serotype O75 was found to be prominent among the non-ST131 ciprofloxacin-resistant Escherichia coli, and they were all lactose non-fermenters. In this study, we investigated the prevalence and characteristics of lactose non-fermenters in urinary isolates of E. coli.A total of 167 E. coli isolates was collected. Antimicrobial susceptibility tests were determined by VITEK 2 (bioMerieux, France). The lactose non-fermenters underwent PCR-based O typing, multilocus sequence typing (MLST) analysis, phylogenetic grouping. For ciprofloxacin-resistant isolates, the resistance mechanisms were investigated.Thirty-three (19.7%) isolates were lactose non-fermenters and the ciprofloxacin resistance rate was significantly higher than in lactose fermenters (66.7% vs. 31.6%, P = 0.0002). According to the serotype, O75 was the most common (42.4%, 14/33) and was followed by O16 (5/33), O2 (4/33), O25b (3/33), O15 (1/33), O6 (1/33), O1 (1/33). All the O75 isolates were ciprofloxacin-resistant and belonged to ST1193. By MLST, they were resolved into 11 STs. ST1193 was the most common (14/33) and was followed by ST131 (8/33). Interestingly, 8 isolates of ST131 were divided into three O types [O16 (4 isolates), O25b (3), and non-typeable (1)]. The ciprofloxacin resistance rate was high in isolates of O75-ST1193 and O25b-ST131 but low in O16-ST131 and O2-ST95. All the ciprofloxacin-resistant isolates showed identical triple mutations in gyrA and parC but the serotype O25b isolates had an additional mutation in parC (E84V). Only one isolate harbored aac(6′)-Ib-cr variant and no qnr gene was detected.Continuous monitoring of the prevalence and clonal composition of the lactose non-fermenters is needed.     

Characterization of antimicrobial resistance and class 1 integrons found in Escherichia coli isolates from humans and animals in Korea

OBJECTIVES: Antimicrobial resistance and class 1 integrons found in Escherichia coli isolates from humans and animals in Korea were characterized. METHODS: E. coli isolates were examined for susceptibility to antimicrobial agents. Integrase genes were amplified. Gene cassette regions for classes 1 and 2 integrons were amplified and sequenced. Conjugal transfer and Southern hybridization were performed to determine the genetic localization of class 1 integrons. The clonal relationship of E. coli isolates carrying an identical cassette array was analysed by PFGE. RESULTS: Commensal E. coli isolates from animals were highly resistant to commonly used antimicrobial agents such as tetracycline, sulfamethoxazole, streptomycin, ampicillin and carbenicillin. Integrons were most prevalent in commensal E. coli isolates from poultry (44%), followed by clinical isolates from humans (33%), commensal isolates from swine (23%) and humans (13%). dfrA17-aadA5, dfrA12-orfF-aadA2 and aadA1 were found most frequently in E. coli isolates from humans, poultry and swine, respectively. Class 1 integrons were mostly located in conjugative plasmids. E. coli isolates carrying an identical cassette array were phylogenetically unrelated. CONCLUSIONS: The use of antibiotics is strongly associated with antimicrobial resistance. E. coli isolates from different sources may select a specific gene cassette by antibiotic selective pressure, which results in differences in class 1 integrons. The horizontal transfer of class 1 integrons through conjugative plasmids seems to be responsible for wide dissemination of a particular type of class 1 integron.     

多重耐药大肠埃希菌中I类整合子的研究

目的分析多重耐药大肠埃希菌中Ⅰ类整合子的流行情况和分子特性。方法对81株多重耐药大肠埃希菌用PCR法扩增细菌总DNA上的Ⅰ类整合子，对大小相同的Ⅰ类整合子进行酶切分析，对纯化后的Ⅰ类整合子作DNA测序，将DNA序列在GenBank中搜索，确定Ⅰ类整合子可变区基因盒的种类和排列。结果在48株（59．3％）细菌的总DNA上检测到Ⅰ类整合子，Ⅰ类整合子的大小约为600～3000bp，48株细菌各含1～2个Ⅰ类整合子，大小相同的Ⅰ类整合子有相同的酶切图谱，整合子中最常见的基因盒为dfr17（甲氧苄啶耐药基因）、aadA5（链霉素、大观霉素耐药基因），最主要的基因盒排列为dfr17-aadA5。结论整合子在多重耐药大肠埃希菌中广泛流行，整合子是介导细菌多重耐药性的重要分子机制。     

尿液分离大肠埃希菌耐复方磺胺甲噁唑相关基因研究

目的了解尿液分离大肠埃希菌对复方磺胺甲噁唑耐药的相关基因的分布特征。方法从临床尿液标本中分离得到145株大肠埃希菌株,采用K-B法对甲氧苄啶和复方磺胺甲噁唑的药物敏感性测定。对甲氧苄啶耐药菌株中的Ⅰ、Ⅱ类整合子进行扩增,并酶切分析相应的可变区,从具有相同酶切图谱的菌株中各选取一株进行测序。测序结果在GenBank中进行核酸序列同源性搜索。对复方磺胺甲噁唑耐药株扩增sul1、sul2、sul3三种基因。对Ⅰ类整合子阳性菌株进行ERIC-PCR基因分型。结果对甲氧苄啶和复方磺胺甲噁唑耐药率分别为73.1%、79.9%。在109株耐甲氧苄啶菌株中,I类整合子含有7种基因盒类型,Ⅱ类仅含有1种类型基因盒,发现4种类型dfrA基因。在119株耐复方磺胺甲噁唑菌株中,sul1阳性72株,sul2阳性81株,sul3阳性2株。在甲氧苄啶和(或)复方磺胺甲噁唑耐药株中,80株Ⅰ类整合酶阳性株ERIC-PCR分为59个基因型。结论在复方磺胺甲噁唑的耐药基因分布中,dfrA17、sul2、sul1携带率较高。在耐药性播散方面,耐药基因的水平转移比菌株克隆传播作用更大。     

Diversity among 2481 Escherichia coli from women with community-acquired lower urinary tract infections in 17 countries

OBJECTIVES: In the recently published ECO.SENS survey, the antimicrobial susceptibility of Escherichia coli from urinary tract infections in women in 16 European countries and Canada was investigated. This study reports the diversity among these E. coli. METHODS: The 2481 E. coli, typed with the PhenePlate (PhP) System utilizing the dynamics and end result of 11 biochemical reactions in a microplate system, were clustered and the Simpson's index of diversity calculated. RESULTS: Seventy-four Common PhP Types (CT) comprising 2067 isolates and 414 Single Types (Si) were identified. Of these, 916 isolates (37%) belonged to one of the four most frequent CT (arbitrarily numbered CT48, 10, 26 and 20). CT48 with 400 isolates and 11 different susceptibility patterns, was widely disseminated across Europe and Canada and was the most frequent type in 13 countries and the second most frequent in the remaining four countries. Sixty-four per cent of the E. coli were susceptible to all eight investigated antimicrobials (CT48: 73%, CT10: 77%, CT26: 62% and CT20: 37%). Forty-six different susceptibility patterns were seen, the three most common being isolated resistance to ampicillin, resistance to ampicillin and trimethoprim, and isolated resistance to trimethoprim. Multiresistance, here defined as resistance to four or more of the investigated antibiotics, was distributed among E. coli belonging to several PhP types. CONCLUSIONS: There was no obvious correlation between the phenotypes identified with the PhP System and the susceptibility pattern. The data did not indicate clonal dissemination within or between countries as a major reason for differences in antimicrobial resistance rates.     

Detection of qnr in clinical isolates of Escherichia coli from Korea

qnr was detected in 2 of 260 Escherichia coli clinical isolates collected from a Korean hospital during the period 2001 to 2003. The two strains were not clonally related. qnr was located in In4 family class 1 integrons of original structure, downstream of orf513 and upstream from another resistance gene (dfrA3b) and a gene of unknown function (orf105). Transfer of the qnr determinant by conjugation could be detected from only one strain.     

Occurrence of single-point gyrA mutations among ciprofloxacin-susceptible Escherichia coli isolates causing urinary tract infections in Latin America

To detect if isolates susceptible to quinolones already carry mutations in the gyrA and parC genes, we selected 12 ciprofloxacin-susceptible Escherichia coli strains collected from patients with urinary tract infections in Latin America in 1998, as part of ongoing SENTRY Antimicrobial Surveillance Program. The isolates studied exhibited minimal inhibitory concentrations (MICs) for ciprofloxacin between < or = 0.015 microg/mL and 0.5 microg/mL. The molecular characterization of quinolone resistance was determinated by amplification of the gyrA and parC by PCR followed by sequencing of the respective amplicons. We observed that E. coli isolates exhibiting MIC, < or = 0.06 microg/mL for ciprofloxacin did not show mutations in either topoisomerase. On the other hand, all isolates with MIC between 0.12 microg/mL and 0.5 microg/mL demonstrated single mutation in the gyrA gene. The most frequent mutation occurred at position 83, where the amino acid serine was replaced by leucine. No mutations in the parC gene were observed. To preserve the potency and prevent the development of resistance, we suggest that quinolone usage should be rational, especially in the treatment of urinary tract infections, and in the prophylaxis of immunosupressed patient populations.     

大肠埃希菌临床分离株质粒介导16S rRNA甲基化酶基因的检测及转移机制研究

近年来,发现一类质粒介导的16S rRNA甲基化酶,该酶能够保护细菌的30S核糖体的16s rRNA不与氨基糖苷类药物结合,造成其对包括阿贝卡星在内的所有的氨基糖苷类药物耐药,并且为高水平耐药~[1-4].目前,在革兰阴性杆菌中已发现ArmA、RmtA、RmtB、RmtC、RmtD和NpmA 6种16SrRNA甲基化酶,且该酶通常和ESBL基因共处一个质粒上,通过质粒在不同的菌株之间播散~[2-3,5-6].我们在前期的研究中发现肺炎克雷伯菌临床分离株中存在rmtB和armA两种16S rRNA甲基化酶基因~[7],16S rRNA甲基化酶基因也可能存在于大肠埃希菌临床分离株中.在本研究中,我们对从温州医学院附属第一医院2006年1月至2008年7月临床标本中分离的680株大肠埃希菌进行了16S rRNA甲基化酶基因筛查,并对其转移机制进行了研究.     

Rapid dissemination and diversity of CTX-M extended-spectrum beta-lactamase genes in commensal Escherichia coli isolates from healthy children from low-resource settings in Latin America

A survey carried out in 2005 among members of a healthy population of children living in Bolivia and Peru revealed that fecal carriage of Escherichia coli strains resistant to expanded-spectrum cephalosporins was remarkably increased compared to that observed in the same settings in 2002 (1.7% in 2005 versus 0.1% in 2002). In this work, we demonstrated that this phenomenon was mainly related to the dissemination of CTX-M-type extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL) determinants among commensal E. coli strains. Of 50 ESBL-producing isolates collected in the 2005 survey, 44 harbored a CTX-M-type and 6 an SHV-type (SHV-2 or SHV-12) ESBL. Compared to 2002 results, an increased diversity of CTX-M-type ESBLs was also observed: members of the CTX-M-1 group (CTX-M-15) emerged in Bolivia (where only CTX-M-2 was observed in 2002), while members of the CTX-M-9 group (CTX-M-14 and CTX-M-24) emerged in Peru (where only CTX-M-15 and CTX-M-2 were observed in 2002). A new CTX-M-2 variant named CTX-M-56 was also detected. Molecular characterization of the CTX-M-producing isolates and gene transfer experiments suggested that different mechanisms could be involved in the spreading of different CTX-M group determinants and revealed that additional resistance determinants for non-beta-lactam antibiotics were preferentially carried by plasmids encoding certain CTX-M variants (CTX-M-15 and variants of the CTX-M-2 group). Three CTX-M-15-encoding conjugative plasmids from Peruvian isolates carried the new fluoroquinolone resistance gene aac(6')-Ib-cr. To our best knowledge, this is the first report of the detection of aac(6')-Ib-cr in Latin America.     

铜绿假单胞菌整合子分布及基因盒携带情况分析

目的 了解烟台地区临床分离铜绿假单胞菌整合子的分布及耐药基因盒携带情况,探讨整合子与菌株耐药的相关性.方法 菌株鉴定及药敏试验采用VITEK 2全自动细菌分析仪.整合子及可变区检测采用PCR法,并采用限制性片段长度多态性分析和测序分析进一步确定可变区耐药基因盒类型.结果 在100株铜绿假单胞菌中38株(38%)检出Ⅰ类整合子,未检出Ⅱ、Ⅲ类整合子.Ⅰ类整合子常见基因盒类型为aac(6′)Ⅱ-aadA13-clmA8-oxA10a和aac(6′)Ⅱ-aadA13-oxA10a,其中aac(6′)Ⅱ-aadA13-oxA10a基因盒为首次出现的新基因盒排列方式,并已登录Genbank:JN118546.结论 烟台地区铜绿假单胞菌整合子类型分布为Ⅰ类整合子,整合子携带菌株与铜绿假单胞菌耐药密切相关.     

Antibiotic resistance and small R plasmids among Escherichia coli isolates from outpatient urinary tract infections in northern Norway.

Escherichia coli strains from outpatient urinary tract infections in northern Norway over a period of 1 year were examined for resistance to nine commonly used antibiotics. Strains collected during 4.5 months were examined for R plasmid content by using conjugation and in vitro transformation. Of the E. coli strains, 42% were resistant to one or more antibiotics. Resistance was highest to sulfonamide (20.8% of all strains), nitrofurantoin (14.5%), and tetracycline (10.1%), whereas less than 6% of the strains were resistant to ampicillin, carbenicillin, cephalothin, nalidixic acid, or trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole. No strain was resistant to gentamicin. Tetracycline resistance was more common in men than in women. Resistance to cephalothin, nalidixic acid, and sulfonamide was higher in strains from older people. Resistance to sulfonamide was more frequent in the urban community. These was no seasonal variation in antibiotic resistance, although the incidence of urinary tract infection varied with seasons. Plasmid-determined resistance to ampicillin, streptomycin, sulfonamide, and tetracycline was found. About 18% of the resistant strains from the urban municipality carried R plasmids, most of which were small plasmids mediating resistance to sulfonamide and streptomycin. The overall frequency of resistance in strains collected from rural areas was similar to the urban frequency, but in the rural strains, R plasmids were found in only 5% of the resistant strains.     

Trends in antimicrobial resistance among urinary tract infection isolates of Escherichia coli from female outpatients in the United States

The Infectious Diseases Society of America advocates trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (SXT) as initial therapy for females with acute uncomplicated bacterial cystitis in settings where the prevalence of SXT resistance does not exceed 10 to 20%. To determine trends in the activities of SXT, ampicillin, ciprofloxacin, and nitrofurantoin among urine isolates of Escherichia coli from female outpatients, susceptibility testing data from The Surveillance Network (TSN) Database-USA (n = 286,187) from 1995 to 2001 were analyzed. Resistance rates among E. coli isolates to ampicillin (range, 36.0 to 37.4% per year), SXT (range, 14.8 to 17.0%), ciprofloxacin (range, 0.7 to 2.5%), and nitrofurantoin (range, 0.4 to 0.8%) varied only slightly over this 7-year period. Ciprofloxacin was the only agent studied that demonstrated a consistent stepwise increase in resistance from 1995 (0.7%) to 2001 (2.5%). In 2001, SXT resistance among E. coli isolates was >10% in all nine U.S. Bureau of the Census regions. At institutions testing > or =100 urinary isolates of E. coli (n = 126) in 2001, ampicillin (range, 27.3 to 98.8%) and SXT (range, 7.5 to 47.1%) resistance rates varied widely while ciprofloxacin (range, 0 to 12.9%) and nitrofurantoin (range, 0 to 2.8%) resistance rates were more consistent. In 2001, the most frequent coresistant phenotypes were resistance to ampicillin and SXT (12.0% of all isolates; 82.3% of coresistant isolates) and resistance to ampicillin, ciprofloxacin, and SXT (1.4% of all isolates; 9.9% of coresistant isolates). Coresistance less frequently included resistance to nitrofurantoin (3.5% of coresistant isolates) than resistance to ciprofloxacin (15.8%), SXT (95.7%), and ampicillin (98.1%). In conclusion, among urinary isolates of E. coli from female outpatients in the United States, national resistance rates to SXT were relatively consistent (14.8 to 17.0%) from 1995 to 2001 but demonstrated considerable regional and institutional variation in 2001. Therapies other than SXT may need to be considered in some locations.     

Occurrence of tetracycline resistance genes among Escherichia coli isolates from the phase 3 clinical trials for tigecycline

Tigecycline, a member of the glycylcycline class of antibiotics, was designed to maintain the antibacterial spectrum of the tetracyclines while overcoming the classic mechanisms of tetracycline resistance. The current study was designed to monitor the prevalence of the tet(A), tet(B), tet(C), tet(D), tet(E), and tet(M) resistance determinants in Escherichia coli isolates collected during the worldwide tigecycline phase 3 clinical trials. A subset of strains were also screened for the tet(G), tet(K), tet(L), and tet(Y) genes. Of the 1,680 E. coli clinical isolates screened for resistance to classical tetracyclines, 405 (24%) were minocycline resistant (MIC > or = 8 microg/ml) and 248 (15%) were tetracycline resistant (MIC > or = 8 microg/ml) but susceptible to minocycline (MIC < or = 4 microg/ml). A total of 452 tetracycline-resistant, nonduplicate isolates were positive by PCR for at least one of the six tetracycline resistance determinants examined. Over half of the isolates encoding a single determinant were positive for tet(A) (26%) or tet(B) (32%) with tet(C), tet(D), tet(E), and tet(M), collectively, found in 4% of isolates. Approximately 33% of the isolates were positive for more than one resistance determinant, with the tet(B) plus tet(E) combination the most highly represented, found in 11% of isolates. The susceptibilities of the tetracycline-resistant strains to tigecycline (MIC(90), 0.5 microg/ml), regardless of the encoded tet determinant(s), were comparable to the tigecycline susceptibility of tetracycline-susceptible strains (MIC(90), 0.5 microg/ml). The results provide a current (2002 to 2006) picture of the distribution of common tetracycline resistance determinants encoded in a globally sourced collection of clinical E. coli strains.