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Review
. 2022 Dec;36(12):e24743.
doi: 10.1002/jcla.24743. Epub 2022 Nov 8.

The making of hypervirulent Klebsiella pneumoniae

Piaopiao Dai  1 , Dakang Hu  1
Affiliations
Review

The making of hypervirulent Klebsiella pneumoniae

Piaopiao Dai et al. J Clin Lab Anal. 2022 Dec.

Abstract

Klebsiella pneumoniae is a notorious bacterium in clinical practice. Virulence, carbapenem-resistance and their convergence among K. pneumoniae are extensively discussed in this article. Hypervirulent K. pneumoniae (HvKP) has spread from the Asian Pacific Rim to the world, inducing various invasive infections, such as pyogenic liver abscess, endophthalmitis, and meningitis. Furthermore, HvKP has acquired more and more drug resistance. Among multidrug-resistant HvKP, hypervirulent carbapenem-resistant K. pneumoniae (Hv-CRKP), and carbapenem-resistant hypervirulent K. pneumoniae (CR-HvKP) are both devastating for their extreme drug resistance and virulence. The hypervirulence of HvKP is primarily attributed to hypercapsule, macromolecular exopolysaccharides, or excessive siderophores, although it has many other factors, for example, lipopolysaccharides, fimbriae, and porins. In contrast with classical determination of HvKP, that is, animal lethality test, molecular determination could be an optional and practical method after improvement. HvKP, including Hv-CRKP and CR-HvKP, has been progressing. R-M and CRISPR-Cas systems may play pivotal roles in such evolutions. Hv-CRKP and CR-HvKP, in particular the former, should be of severe concern due to their being more and more prevalent.

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Conflict of interest statement

None declared.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
The schematic diagram of Klebsiella pneumoniae and the difference between cKP and HvKP
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
The formation and transfer of drug resistance or virulence elements. (A) the formation of drug resistance or virulence elements. (B) the transfer of drug resistance or virulence elements
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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