BACKGROUNDIn the present study, we characterized multidrug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa (MDRP) clinical isolates from a paediatric facility and investigated the types and features of the metallo-beta-lactamases (MBLs) produced by carbapenem-resistant strains.

METHODSFour hundred and ninety-eight strains of Pseudomonas aeruginosa were isolated from patients at Beijing Children's Hospital between January 2005 and December 2006. The minimal inhibition concentrations (MICs) of the strains for 13 antibiotics were measured. A combination of the E test and PCR amplification/DNA sequencing was used to define the carbapenem-resistant strains.

RESULTSWe found that 24.1% (120/498) of the isolates were MDRP. The frequencies of resistance to imipenem and meropenem were 34.2% and 35.8%, respectively, and the MIC50 and MIC90 values for the two antibiotics were identical at 4 microg/ml and 32 microg/ml, respectively. The detection rate for carbapenem resistance was 49.2% (59/120). Among the 59 carbapenem-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains, 39 (66.1%) were positive for the MBL genotype; 35 (89.7%) strains carried the bla(IMP) gene and 4 (10.3%) strains carried the bla(VIM) gene. Neither bla(SPM) nor bla(GIM) was amplified from any of the 59 isolates. DNA sequencing revealed that IMP-1 was present in 35 IMP-producing isolates and VIM-2 was detected in four VIM-producing isolates.

CONCLUSIONSThese MDRP isolates exhibited high frequencies of resistance to carbapenems among clinical isolates from a paediatric facility in Beijing, China. The production of MBL appears to be an important mechanism for carbapenem resistance in Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Carbapenems ; pharmacology ; Child ; Drug Resistance, Multiple, Bacterial ; Humans ; Microbial Sensitivity Tests ; Pseudomonas aeruginosa ; drug effects ; enzymology ; Sequence Analysis, DNA ; beta-Lactamases ; biosynthesis ; classification ; genetics

The trends and types of carbapenemase-producing Gram-negative bacilli were analyzed from clinical specimens collected between 2005 and 2012 at a Korean teaching hospital. The proportions of carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter spp. increased markedly to 66%. Metallo-beta-lactamase producers significantly decreased and the majority shifted from the bla(VIM-2) type to the bla(IMP-1) type.
Acinetobacter/classification/drug effects/*enzymology ; Acinetobacter Infections/drug therapy ; Anti-Bacterial Agents/*pharmacology ; Bacterial Proteins ; Carbapenems/*pharmacology ; Drug Resistance, Microbial ; Gram-Negative Bacteria/*drug effects/enzymology/isolation & purification ; Humans ; Incidence ; Microbial Sensitivity Tests/trends ; Population Surveillance ; Pseudomonas/classification/drug effects/enzymology ; Republic of Korea/epidemiology ; beta-Lactamases/biosynthesis/*drug effects