RESUMEN
Objective To investigate the colonization of Gram-negative bacilli carrying mcr-1 gene in intestinal tracts of inpatients and people having physical examination for further elucidating the molecular and epidemiological features of mcr-1 gene. Methods A total of 1263 and 750 fecal specimens were col-lected from inpatients in the First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University and people having physical examination in the Kingmed Physical Examination Centre, respectively. Drug-resistant bacteria were isolated using Maconkey agar supplemented with colistin. PCR was performed to detect the bacteria carrying mcr-1 gene. Multilocus sequence typing ( MLST) and enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus-PCR ( ERIC-PCR) were used for homology analysis. The transferability of mcr-1 gene was verified by plasmid transfer assays. Plasmids of mcr-1-carrying strains were typed by PCR-based replicon typing techniques. Twelve virulence-related genes were also detected by PCR. Results Ninety-two colistin-resistant strains were isolated from the 1263 samples from inpatients(7. 3％, 92/1263) and two of them were positive for mcr-1 gene ( one strain also carried the blaNDM-5 gene) . Thirty-six colistin-resistant strains were isolated from the 750 samples of physical examination group (4. 8％, 36/750) and one of them carried the mcr-1 gene. MLST analysis showed that three mcr-1-carrying Escherichia coli strains ( minimum inhibitory concentration of colistin:8 μg/ml) belonged to three different sequence types. Moreover, they exhibited different banding patterns in ERIC-PCR analysis. All of the mcr-1-carrying isolates could transfer mcr-1 gene to the recipient strains successfully. Six types of incompatibility plasmids were detected in the mcr-1-carrying isolates ( IncFⅡ, IncX2, IncHI2, IncFIB, IncX4 and IncX1). Virulence-related genes fimH, iutA and fyuA were detec-ted in all mcr-1-carrying Escherichia coli strains. Conclusions Colistin-resistant strains and mcr-1 gene are prevalent in inpatients and people having physical examination, which brings potential risk for the control of clinical infections.
RESUMEN
BACKGROUND: We investigated the molecular epidemiological characteristics and antimicrobial susceptibility pattern of penicillinase-producing Neisseria gonorrhoeae (PPNG) isolates to monitor the change in distribution of bla(TEM) in Korea. METHODS: We collected 804 PPNG isolates from diverse hospitals and clinics mainly located in Seoul, Korea, over a period of 11 years (2005–2015). Isolate susceptibility to seven antimicrobials was determined using the agar dilution test. The molecular epidemiological characteristics of the isolates were determined by Sanger sequencing of bla(TEM), N. gonorrhoeae multiantigen sequence typing (NG-MAST) and plasmid typing. RESULTS: Among 72 fully sequenced PPNG isolates, sixteen (22.2%) possessed TEM-135. All TEM-135 isolates had a common silent mutation (c.18C>T), which was previously unreported. We observed a pattern of continuous increase in the number of TEM-135 isolates since 2012. The median and 90% minimum inhibitory concentration of azithromycin were substantially lower in the TEM-135 group than in the non-PPNG and TEM-1 groups. All TEM-135 isolates showed different NG-MAST types and predominantly harbored Toronto/Rio (75%) plasmids. A comprehensive comparative analysis of PPNG with TEM-135 according to NG-MAST, plasmid type, and year of isolation revealed a wide distribution. CONCLUSIONS: The proportion of TEM-135 PPNG has continuously increased since 2012, in association with clonal spread. The difference at position 18 of the TEM-135 sequence can be interpreted as the existence of multiple clonal complexes. The possibility that TEM-135 was acquired via foreign plasmids requires careful follow-up and continuous monitoring of TEM-135 to ascertain whether it constitutes a step towards evolutionary change.