Beta-Lactamases-Producing Gram-Negative Bacteria in the 21st Century

A special issue of Pathogens (ISSN 2076-0817). This special issue belongs to the section "Bacterial Pathogens".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 November 2023) | Viewed by 5104

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
1. Servicio Antimicrobianos, INEI-ANLIS “Dr. Carlos G. Malbrán”, Ave. Velez Sarsfield 563, C1282AFF, Buenos Aires, Argentina
2. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina
Interests: carbapenemases; one health; epidemiology; dissemination of resistance; evolution of resistance

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Co-Guest Editor
Department of Biological Science, California State University Fullerton, 800 N State College Blvd, Fullerton, CA 92831, USA
Interests: mechanisms of antibiotic resistance; bacterial pathogenesis; dissemination and evolution of pathogens; morbidity and mortality of bacterial infections; molecular mechanism of virulence; bacterial evolution
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Co-Guest Editor
1. Institute for Research in Molecular Bacteriology and Virology (IBaViM-FFyB), University of Buenos Aires, Junin 956 (1113), Buenos Aires, Argentina
2. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina
Interests: antibiotics; beta-lactam resistance

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In recent decades, the increased detection of Gram-negative bacteria producing extended-spectrum β-lactamases (ESBLs) and/or carbapenemases has become an urgent public health concern. These enzymes confer resistance to antimicrobials that are generally used as a last-resort therapy for these pathogens, endangering available treatment options.

In particular, ESBLs confer resistance to all β-lactams and monobactams but are susceptible to carbapenems. Carbapenemases confer resistance to all β-lactams, including carbapenems. The genes that encode for ESBLs (e.g., blaCTX-M) and carbapenemases (e.g., blaKPC, blaNDM) disseminate vertically, via successful clones, and horizontally, through the transfer of genetic elements inter- and intraspecies. In addition, the evolution of resistance in post-COVID-19 times has led to the dissemination of Enterobacterales harboring multiple carbapenemases and ESBLs.

This Special Issue of Pathogens, “Beta-Lactamases-Producing Gram-Negative Bacteria in the 21st Century”, encourages submissions of original research papers and reviews that can bring an understanding and propose solutions to the main challenges in the subject. Areas of particular interest include drivers of transmission within the hospital, the community, to food and wild animals and the environment, as well as epidemiology and surveillance of Enterobacterales and non-fermentative Gram-negative bacteria and methodologies to decrease detection time and novel approaches to guide treatment.

We welcome and look forward to publishing your research.

Dr. Sonia Alejandra Gómez
Dr. María Soledad Ramírez
Dr. Pablo Power
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • one health
  • beta-lactamase
  • gram negative bacteria
  • high risk clones
  • surveillance

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

19 pages, 1713 KiB  
Article
MALDI-TOF MS-Based KPC Direct Detection from Patients’ Positive Blood Culture Bottles, Short-Term Cultures, and Colonies at the Hospital
by Agustina Costa, Roque Figueroa-Espinosa, Jerson A. Martínez, Liliana Fernández-Canigia, María I. Maldonado, Silvina A. Bergese, Ana E. Schneider, Carlos Vay, Carlos H. Rodriguez, Marcela Nastro, Gabriel O. Gutkind and José A. Di Conza
Pathogens 2023, 12(7), 865; https://doi.org/10.3390/pathogens12070865 - 22 Jun 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2256
Abstract
Carbapenemase resistance in Enterobacterales is a global public health problem and rapid and effective methods for detecting these resistance mechanisms are needed urgently. Our aim was to evaluate the performance of a MALDI-TOF MS-based “Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase” (KPC) detection protocol from patients’ [...] Read more.
Carbapenemase resistance in Enterobacterales is a global public health problem and rapid and effective methods for detecting these resistance mechanisms are needed urgently. Our aim was to evaluate the performance of a MALDI-TOF MS-based “Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase” (KPC) detection protocol from patients’ positive blood cultures, short-term cultures, and colonies in healthcare settings. Bacterial identification and KPC detection were achieved after protein extraction with organic solvents and target spot loading with suitable organic matrices. The confirmation of KPC production was performed using susceptibility tests and blaKPC amplification using PCR and sequencing. The KPC direct detection (KPC peak at approximately 28.681 Da) from patients’ positive blood cultures, short-term cultures, and colonies, once bacterial identification was achieved, showed an overall sensibility and specificity of 100% (CI95: [95%, 100%] and CI95: [99%, 100%], respectively). The concordance between hospital routine bacterial identification protocol and identification using this new methodology from the same extract used for KPC detection was ≥92%. This study represents the pioneering effort to directly detect KPC using MALDI-TOF MS technology, conducted on patient-derived samples obtained from hospitals for validation purposes, in a multi-resistance global context that requires concrete actions to preserve the available therapeutic options and reduce the spread of antibiotic resistance markers. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Beta-Lactamases-Producing Gram-Negative Bacteria in the 21st Century)
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12 pages, 306 KiB  
Article
Emergence of Hyper-Epidemic Clones of Enterobacterales Clinical Isolates Co-Producing KPC and Metallo-Beta-Lactamases during the COVID-19 Pandemic
by Diego Faccone, Sonia A. Gomez, Juan Manuel de Mendieta, María Belén Sanz, Mariano Echegorry, Ezequiel Albornoz, Celeste Lucero, Paola Ceriana, Alejandra Menocal, Florencia Martino, Denise De Belder, Alejandra Corso and Fernando Pasterán
Pathogens 2023, 12(3), 479; https://doi.org/10.3390/pathogens12030479 - 18 Mar 2023
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 2295
Abstract
Background. The global spread of carbapenemase-producing Enterobacterales has become an epidemiological risk for healthcare systems by limiting available antimicrobial treatments. The COVID-19 pandemic worsened this scenario, prompting the emergence of extremely resistant microorganisms. Methods. Between March 2020 and September 2021, the NRL confirmed [...] Read more.
Background. The global spread of carbapenemase-producing Enterobacterales has become an epidemiological risk for healthcare systems by limiting available antimicrobial treatments. The COVID-19 pandemic worsened this scenario, prompting the emergence of extremely resistant microorganisms. Methods. Between March 2020 and September 2021, the NRL confirmed 82 clinical Enterobacterales isolates harboring a combination of blaKPC and MBL genes. Molecular typing was analyzed by PFGE and MLST. Modified double-disk synergy (MDDS) tests were used for phenotypic studies. Results. Isolates were submitted from 28 hospitals located in seven provinces and Buenos Aires City, including 77 K. pneumoniae, 2 K. oxytoca, 2 C. freundii, and 1 E. coli. Almost half of K. pneumoniae isolates (n = 38; 49.4%), detected in 15 hospitals, belong to the CC307 clone. CC11 was the second clone, including 29 (37.7%) isolates (22, ST11 and 7, ST258) from five cities and 12 hospitals. Three isolates belonging to CC45 were also detected. The carbapenemase combinations observed were as follows: 55% blaKPC-2 plus blaNDM-5; 32.5% blaKPC-2 plus blaNDM-1; 5% blaKPC-3 plus blaNDM-1; 5% blaKPC-2 plus blaIMP-8; and 2.5% strain with blaKPC-2 plus blaNDM-5 plus blaOXA-163. Aztreonam/avibactam and aztreonam/relebactam were the most active combinations (100% and 91% susceptible, respectively), followed by fosfomycin (89%) and tigecycline (84%). Conclusions. The MDDS tests using ceftazidime-avibactam/EDTA and aztreonam/boronic acid disks improved phenotypic classification as dual producers. The successful high-risk clones of K. pneumoniae, such as hyper-epidemic CC307 and CC11 clones, drove the dissemination of double carbapenemase-producing isolates during the COVID-19 pandemic. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Beta-Lactamases-Producing Gram-Negative Bacteria in the 21st Century)
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