Aims: The aim of the study was to analyze the epidemiology of Acinetobacter baumannii and investigate the genetic characteristics of carbapenem-resistant A. baumannii (CRAB) isolates isolated from blood cultures in a regional hospital in Hong Kong. Results: Twenty blood culture isolates were collected from a regional hospital in Hong Kong from 2014 to 2017. Twenty isolates were grouped into five existing sequence types (STs) and five new STs within the following prevalence: ST195 was predominant with a prevalence of 45% (n = 9), followed by ST373 and ST447 (10%; n = 2 each), and ST176 and ST345 (5%; n = 1 each). Resistance to carbapenem antibiotics was 55% (n = 11). Six carbapenem-resistant isolates harbored blaOXA-23 genes and ISAba1 mobile elements. Polymerase chain reaction confirmed that ISAba1 is located upstream to the blaOXA-23 genes, suggesting an association between ISAba1 and blaOXA-23 genes with carbapenem resistance. Conclusion: This study is the first to report the emergence of CRAB ST195 harboring blaOXA-23 in Hong Kong.
Keywords: Acinetobacter baumannii; ST195; carbapenemase genes; multilocus sequence typing.