AUTHOR=Al-Sultan Abdulrahman A. , Evans Benjamin A. , Aboulmagd Elsayed , Al-Qahtani Ahmed A. , Bohol Marie Fe F. , Al-Ahdal Mohammed N. , Opazo Andres F. , Amyes Sebastian G. B. 

TITLE=Dissemination of multiple carbapenem-resistant clones of Acinetobacter baumannii in the Eastern District of Saudi Arabia

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Microbiology

VOLUME=6

YEAR=2015

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2015.00634

DOI=10.3389/fmicb.2015.00634

ISSN=1664-302X

ABSTRACT=<p>It has previously been shown that carbapenem-resistant <italic>Acinetobacter baumannii</italic> are frequently detected in Saudi Arabia. The present study aimed to identify the epidemiology and distribution of antibiotic resistance determinants in these bacteria. A total of 83 <italic>A. baumannii</italic> isolates were typed by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE), and screened by PCR for carbapenemase genes and insertion sequences. Antibiotic sensitivity to imipenem, meropenem, tigecycline, and colistin were determined. Eight different PFGE groups were identified, and were spread across multiple hospitals. Many of the PFGE groups contained isolates belonging to World-wide clone 2. Carbapenem resistance or intermediate resistance was detected in 69% of isolates. The <italic>bla</italic><sub>VIM</sub> gene was detected in 94% of isolates, while <italic>bla</italic><sub>OXA–23–like</sub> genes were detected in 58%. The data demonstrate the co-existence and wide distribution of a number of clones of carbapenem-resistant <italic>A. baumannii</italic> carrying multiple carbapenem-resistance determinants within hospitals in the Eastern Region of Saudi Arabia.</p>