Differential distribution of plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance genes in clinical enterobacteria with unusual phenotypes of quinolone susceptibility from Argentina

Antimicrob Agents Chemother. 2013 Jun;57(6):2467-75. doi: 10.1128/AAC.01615-12. Epub 2013 Mar 11.

Abstract

We studied a collection of 105 clinical enterobacteria with unusual phenotypes of quinolone susceptibility to analyze the occurrence of plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance (PMQR) and oqx genes and their implications for quinolone susceptibility. The oqxA and oqxB genes were found in 31/34 (91%) Klebsiella pneumoniae and 1/3 Klebsiella oxytoca isolates. However, the oqxA- and oqxB-harboring isolates lacking other known quinolone resistance determinants showed wide ranges of susceptibility to nalidixic acid and ciprofloxacin. Sixty of the 105 isolates (57%) harbored at least one PMQR gene [qnrB19, qnrB10, qnrB2, qnrB1, qnrS1, or aac(6')-Ib-cr)], belong to 8 enterobacterial species, and were disseminated throughout the country, and most of them were categorized as susceptible by the current clinical quinolone susceptibility breakpoints. We developed a disk diffusion-based method to improve the phenotypic detection of aac(6')-Ib-cr. The most common PMQR genes in our collection [qnrB19, qnrB10, and aac(6')-Ib-cr] were differentially distributed among enterobacterial species, and two different epidemiological settings were evident. First, the species associated with community-acquired infections (Salmonella spp. and Escherichia coli) mainly harbored qnrB19 (a unique PMQR gene) located in small ColE1-type plasmids that might constitute its natural reservoirs. qnrB19 was not associated with an extended-spectrum β-lactamase phenotype. Second, the species associated with hospital-acquired infections (Enterobacter spp., Klebsiella spp., and Serratia marcescens) mainly harbored qnrB10 in ISCR1-containing class 1 integrons that may also have aac(6')-Ib-cr as a cassette within the variable region. These two PMQR genes were strongly associated with an extended-spectrum β-lactamase phenotype. Therefore, this differential distribution of PMQR genes is strongly influenced by their linkage or lack of linkage to integrons.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Anti-Bacterial Agents / pharmacology*
  • Argentina
  • Bacterial Proteins / genetics*
  • Bacterial Proteins / metabolism
  • Drug Resistance, Bacterial / genetics*
  • Enterobacteriaceae / classification
  • Enterobacteriaceae / drug effects*
  • Enterobacteriaceae / genetics
  • Enterobacteriaceae / isolation & purification
  • Enterobacteriaceae Infections / microbiology
  • Humans
  • Integrons / genetics
  • Microbial Sensitivity Tests
  • Molecular Sequence Data
  • Phenotype
  • Plasmids / genetics*
  • Quinolones / pharmacology*
  • Sequence Analysis, DNA

Substances

  • Anti-Bacterial Agents
  • Bacterial Proteins
  • Quinolones

Associated data

  • GENBANK/JX298079
  • GENBANK/JX298080
  • GENBANK/KC503934
  • GENBANK/KC503935