Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Multicenter Study
. 2020 Sep 22;20(1):693.
doi: 10.1186/s12879-020-05404-w.

Genotypic characterisation and antimicrobial resistance of Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains isolated from patients of different hospitals and medical centres in Poland

Marcin Brzozowski  1 , Żaneta Krukowska  1 , Katarzyna Galant  2 , Joanna Jursa-Kulesza  1 , Danuta Kosik-Bogacka  3
Affiliations
Multicenter Study

Genotypic characterisation and antimicrobial resistance of Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains isolated from patients of different hospitals and medical centres in Poland

Marcin Brzozowski et al. BMC Infect Dis. .

Abstract

Background: Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a Gram-negative bacteria responsible for infections in immunocompromised patients and is one of the most common causes of nosocomial infections particularly in intensive care and burn units. We aimed to investigate the population structure of P. aeruginosa strains isolated from patients at different hospital wards.

Methods: We analysed the possible presence of P. aeruginosa epidemic or endemic strains in hospitals of the selected region. A genotyping analysis was performed for P. aeruginosa isolates (n = 202) collected from patients of eleven hospitals in north-western Poland. Collections of P. aeruginosa were genotyped using pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). Phenotypic screening for antibiotic susceptibility was performed for the common antimicrobial agents.

Results: Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates were distributed among 116 different pulsotype groups. We identified 30 groups of clonally related strains, each containing from 2 to 17 isolates and typed the obtained 13 unique patterns, designated as A, D, E, J, K, M, N, Ó, P, T, X, AC, AD, and AH. The two largest clusters, D and E, contained 17 and 13 isolates, respectively. Strains of these groups were continuously isolated from patients at intensive care units and burn units, indicating transmission of these strains.

Conclusions: In this study, we demonstrate the clonal relatedness of P. aeruginosa strains and their constant exchange in hospitals over a period of 15 months. The obtained results indicate a predominantly non-clonal structure of P. aeruginosa.

Keywords: Antimicrobial resistance; Genotyping; PFGE; Population structure; Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Restriction patterns and characteristics of isolates belonging to PFGE types containing five or more strains. Strains isolated from ICUs are marked with + (ICU, intensive care unit, IMP, imipenem; MEP, meropenem; CTZ, ceftazidime; FEP; cefepime, GM, gentamycin; TOB, tobramycin; AMC, amikacin; CIP, ciprofloxacin; PIP-TAZ, piperacillin-tazobactam)
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Distribution of isolates belonging to different PFGE types among intensive care units, burn units, surgical units, and other units (UNK, unique pulsotype)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Vincent JL, Rello J, Marshall J, et al. International study of the prevalence and outcomes of infection in intensive care units. JAMA. 2009;302:2323–2329. - PubMed
    1. Livermore DM. Multiple mechanisms of antimicrobial resistance in Pseudomonas aeruginosa: our worst nightmare? Clin Infect Dis. 2002;34:634–640. - PubMed
    1. Muscarella LF. Contribution of tap water and environmental surfaces to nosocomial transmission of antibiotic-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol. 2004;25:342–345. - PubMed
    1. Gómez-Zorrilla S, Camoez M, Tubau F, Cañizares R, Periche E, Dominguez MA, Ariza J, Peña C. Prospective observational study of prior rectal colonization status as a predictor for subsequent development of Pseudomonas aeruginosa clinical infections. Antimicrob Agents Chemother. 2015;59:5213–5219. - PMC - PubMed
    1. D’Agata E. Pseudomonas aeruginosa and other Pseudomonas species. In: Bennet JE, Dolin R, Blaser M, editors. Principles and practice of infectious diseases. 8. Philadelphia: Elsevier; 2015. pp. 2518–2532.

Publication types

MeSH terms

Substances