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. 2011;6(12):e28566.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0028566. Epub 2011 Dec 13.

Endemic Acinetobacter baumannii in a New York hospital

Scott A Weisenberg  1 , Audrey N Schuetz, Elizabeth L Alexander, Brain Eiss, Maryam Behta, Lisa Saiman, Davise H Larone, Stephen G Jenkins, Kyu Y Rhee
Affiliations

Endemic Acinetobacter baumannii in a New York hospital

Scott A Weisenberg et al. PLoS One. 2011.

Erratum in

  • PLoS One. 2012;7(10). doi:10.1371/annotation/22d2ce95-f6c5-46fa-9e32-0d0fd21e20df. Alexander, Elizabeth A [corrected to Alexander, Elizabeth L]

Abstract

Background: Acinetobacter baumannii is an increasingly multidrug-resistant (MDR) cause of hospital-acquired infections, often associated with limited therapeutic options. We investigated A. baumannii isolates at a New York hospital to characterize genetic relatedness.

Methods: Thirty A. baumannii isolates from geographically-dispersed nursing units within the hospital were studied. Isolate relatedness was assessed by repetitive sequence polymerase chain reaction (rep-PCR). The presence and characteristics of integrons were assessed by PCR. Metabolomic profiles of a subset of a prevalent strain isolates and sporadic isolates were characterized and compared.

Results: We detected a hospital-wide group of closely related carbapenem resistant MDR A. baumannii isolates. Compared with sporadic isolates, the prevalent strain isolates were more likely to be MDR (p = 0.001). Isolates from the prevalent strain carried a novel Class I integron sequence. Metabolomic profiles of selected prevalent strain isolates and sporadic isolates were similar.

Conclusion: The A. baumannii population at our hospital represents a prevalent strain of related MDR isolates that contain a novel integron cassette. Prevalent strain and sporadic isolates did not segregate by metabolomic profiles. Further study of environmental, host, and bacterial factors associated with the persistence of prevalent endemic A. baumannii strains is needed to develop effective prevention strategies.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing Interests: The authors have read the journal's policy and have the following conflicts: Scott Weisenberg has received an investigator initiated grant from Merck for an unrelated study (related to international travel and importation of ESBL producing bacteria). Kyu Rhee has received support for unrelated studies on Enterococci from Cubist. This does not alter the authors' adherence to all the PLoS ONE policies on sharing data and materials.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Rep-PCR Analysis of Study Isolates.
Isolates with more than 90% similarity were considered related. Study isolates (WC 1–30) are shown, plus one isolate (WC-31) isolated on hospital day 1 after transfer from an outside hospital. Results show the majority of the study isolates are closely related.
Figure 2
Figure 2. Integron Content in Select Study Isolates.
Integron PCR gene products of WC 13–24 are shown. The block arrow marks the 550 base pair PCR product of the prevalent strain A. baumannii. The water control is labeled “neg.” The cartoon shows the layout of a typical Class I integron. The PCR primers are presented by CS-F and CS-R.
Figure 3
Figure 3. Metabolomic Analysis of Prevalent Endemic and Sporadic A. baumannii Isolates.
(A) Principal components analysis of prevalent endemic (black circles) and sporadic (gray circles) isolates (in which the metabolomic profile of each isolate is represented as a single point on a 3-D axis) shows significant overap, consistent with similar metabolic profiles. (B) Targeted analysis of intermediates of the Entner-Doudoroff (ED) pathway shows no change in abundance of ED metabolites in sporadic (gray) vs prevalent endemic (black) isolates. (C) Abundance of gluconolactone (a representative intermediate in the ED pathway) did not differ significantly between sporadic isolates (WC-1, WC-5, and WC-6) and prevalent endemic isolates (WC-9, WC-5, and WC-6).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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