ObjectiveTo find out the antimicrobial resistance of clinical sequential isolates of Serratia marcescens,investigate the primary antimicrobial resistant mechanism of Serratia marcescens to β-lactams antibiotics.MethodsReview the antimicrobial resistance data of 247 Serratia marcescens isolates collected sequentially from different clinical wards during 2007 to 2010 in the First Hospital of Ningbo,which their antimicrobial susceptihility testing was got by using Vitek2-Compact system and matching products of gram-negative susceptibility card (GNS).The antimicrobial resistant genes of 20 carbapenems resistant isolates were detected by PCR.Results The Serratia marcescens resistant rates to ceftriaxone,aztreonarn and ciprofloxacin in our hospital were 70.4％ ( 174/247 ),64.8％ ( 160/247 ),57.4％ ( 142/247),respectively,the resistant rates were lower to amikacin,gentamicin,imipenem and meropenem,which were 3.5％ ( 8/229 ),5.4％ ( 13/241 ),5.9％ ( 14/237 ),8.1％ ( 20/247 ),respectively.PCR experiment showed that the expression levels of the AmpC gene in 4 strains were higher than that of the negative reference strains.The expression levels were 98.3,102.3,121.5,87.3 times compared to the negative reference strains,respectively.Twelve strains (strain no.2,3,5,6,9,10,14,15,16,17,18 and 19)produce bothblaCTX-MandblaKPC-2 enzymes.Highly detecedhlaCTX-Mof Serratia marcescens in our hospital included CTX-M1,CTX-M2,CTX-M9.Isolates no.7 and 18 were carrying blaSHV gene,Isolates no.8 and 13 were carrying blaSME,Isolates no.11 and 20 were carrying blaTEM.There were 5 strains (no.3,4,5,7 and 16) lose the outer membrane protein (OMP) genes ompC and ompF.Two strains( no.1 and 12 ) lose OMP gene ompF only,and one strain ( no.20 ) was lose OMP gene ompC only.ConclusionsThe cause of β-lactam antibiotics resistance of Serratia marcescens was complicated,and the most important mechanism is producing β-1actams and loss of OMP.Understanding the evolution and drug resistant mechanisms will help for best use of antibiotics and reducing the selection of antibiotics to resistant isolates.

ObjectiveTo determine whether aadA2 gene can be translated from the ATG triplet,which there was no plausible ribosome binding site preceding it,and synthetized a functional protein in class 1 integron.MethodsSite-specific mutagenesis was used to construct aadA2 gene cassette with different start codons,together with their upstreamed promoters of variable regions were cloned into plasmid pACYC184 respective.The constructed plasmids were then transfored into Escherichia coli JM109,Western blot was used to detect the translation products of aadA2 gene with different start codons.Broth microdilution method was used to detect the minimal inhibitory concentrations to streptomycin in Escherichia coli JM109 containing aadA2 gene with different start codons.ResultsaadA2 gene can initiate translation from both ATG and GTG triplets in aminoacyl -3-adenylyltransferase protein synthesis,though there was no plausible ribosome binding site preceding the ATG triplet.Besides GTG and ATG triplets,there was other start codon downstream of the GTG triplet in aadA2 gene.The translated products that initiated from the start codons that described above were all functional AAD(3) proteins that can be detected by anti- aminoacyl -3-adenylyltransferase polyclonal antisera in Western blot and conferred different resistance levels to streptomycin in E.coli.ConclusionWhen inserted as the first gene cassette in class 1 integron,aadA2 gene can initiate translation from ATG triplet and synthetized a functional protein,though there was no plausible ribosome binding site preceding it.This structural characterization of class 1 integron can initiate translation of the open reading frame harbored in gene cassette that integrated into class 1 integron,though there was no plausible RBS preceding the start codon.This make class 1 integron be more convenience to express the genes that capture from environment.

ObjectiveTo prepare antiserum specific to aminoacy1-3″-adenylyltransferase [ AAD (3″) ],and to explore the application value of the prepared antiserum in detecting the expression levels of aadA2 gene that downstream of 8 different promoters (PcS,PcH2,PcH1,PcW,PcS-P2,PcH2-P2,PcH1P2 and PcW-P2 ) of variable regions in class 1 integron.MethodsaadA2 gene was amplified by polymerase chain reaction(PCR) and cloned into the expression plasmid pET19b.After inducing,the recombined aminoacy1-3″-adenylyltransferase[ AAD(3″)] with His-tag was expressed,purified and immunized rabbits to get anti- AAD(3″) specific serum.The prepared antiserum was used to detect the translation levels of aadA2 gene that downstream of different promoters of variable regions in class 1 integron by Western blotting (WB).Broth microdilution method was used to detect the minimal inhibitory concentrations (MIC) to streptomycin in Escherichia coli JM109 with aadA2 gene downstream of different promoters of variable regions.ResultsRecombined AAD (3″) expression plasmid pET19b-aadA2 was constructed successfully and was verified by sequence analysis.After transformed into E.coli BL21 ( DE3 ),a resoluble recombined AAD(3″) high expression strain was obtained.After fermentation,recombined AAD(3″) was purified and immunized rabbits.The anti- AAD(3″) specific serum was obtained with titer ＞ 1∶100 000.WB was used to detect the expression levels of AAD (3″),the translation product of aadA2 gene,that downstream of 8 different promoters of variable regions.The relative expression level of AAD (3″) that downstream of PcW was assumed to be 1,then the relative expression levels of AAD(3″),which all were detected 3 times independently,that downstream of PcS,PcH2,PcH1,PcS-P2,PcH2-P2,PcH1-P2 and PcW-P2 were 12.9±2.3,9.1±1.0,2.0±0.4,16.0±1.3,14.1 ±1.3,10.5±0.7 and 8.9 ±1.7 respective.Very different expression levels of AAD (3″) that downstream of different promoters of variable regions were obtained( F =32.421,P ＜ 0.01 ).The mean values of MIC,which all were detected 3 times independently,to streptomycin in E.coli JM109 with aadA2 gene downstream of PcS,PcH2,PcH1,PcW,PcS-P2,PcH2P2,PcH1-P2 and PcW-P2 were 256,256,64,128,32,128,4 and 64 mg/L respective.These results indicated the different expression levels of aadA2 gene that downstream of different promoters of variable regions can confer their host bacteria different resistance levels to streptomycin.Conclusions Resoluble recombined AAD(3″) is purified successfully and high titer anti- AAD(3″) specific antiserum is obtained from the immunized rabbits.This laid foundation for further investigation on the correlationship between the expressions of intI1 gene and the gene cassettes within variable regions.The expression levels of antibiotic gene cassettes that downstream of different promoters of variable regions are very different,so are the very different antibiotic resistance levels of the host bacteria.Therefore more attentions should be paid to the researches on the classification of promoters of variable regions when molecular epidemiology studies on the class 1 integrons in clinical isolates were conducted.

ObjectiveTo investigate correlation between drug-resistance related genes and mobile genetic elements of Klebsiella pneumoniae resistant to β-lactams. Methods Forty-seven strains of multidrug-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae were collected from 6 hospitals in Hangzhou and Huzhou of Zhejiang province from August 2008 to May 2010.Modified Hodge test was performed to detect phenotypes of carbapenemases.Forty kinds of β-lactamases (class A-D),ompK35,ompK36,and 12 kinds of mobile genetic elements were detected by PCR,and the results were analyzed by index cluster.ResultsThirty-five strains were positive in modified Hodge test,and 5 kinds of β-lactamases gene ( including KPC-2-like,GenBank:HQ258934) and 9 kinds of mobile genetic elements were detected.Mutations were observed in ompK35 and ompK36 when compared with sensitive strains.Index cluster analysis showed that correlation existed between KPC-2,KPC-2-like and ISKpn6,between TEM-1 and ISEcpl,IS26,int Ⅰ 1,trbC,IS903,and between CMY-2,OXA-30,DHA-1 and tnpU,tnp513,trbC.ConclusionsFive kinds of β-1actamases genes,and mutations in ompK35 and ompK36 may be associated with the resistance to β-1actams in multidrug-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae.