Genetic characterization of ESBL-producing Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae isolated from wastewater and river water in Tunisia: predominance of CTX-M-15 and high genetic diversity.

Genetic characterization of ESBL-producing Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae isolated from wastewater and river water in Tunisia: predominance of CTX-M-15 and high genetic diversity. Environ Sci Pollut Res Int. 2020 Aug 07;: Authors: Hassen B, Abbassi MS, Benlabidi S, Ruiz-Ripa L, Mama OM, Ibrahim C, Hassen A, Hammami S, Torres C Abstract Aquatic environments are crucial hotspots for the dissemination of antibiotic resistant microorganisms and resistance genes. Thus, the purpose of this study was to investigate the occurrence and the genetic characterization of cefotaxime-resistant (CTXR) Enterobacteriaceae at a Tunisian semi-industrial pilot plant with biological treatment (WWPP) and its receiving river (Rouriche River, downstream from WWPP) located in Tunis City, during 2017-2018. We collected 105 and 15 water samples from the WWPP and the Rouriche River, respectively. Samples were screened to recover ESBL-producing Enterobacteriaceae (ESBL-E) and isolates were characterized for phenotype/genotype of antimicrobial resistance, integrons, plasmid types and molecular typing (multilocus sequence typing, MLST). Among 120 water samples, 33 and 4 contained ESBL-producing E. coli and K. pneumoniae isolates, respectively. Most isolates were multidrug resistant and produced CTX-M-15 (28 isolates), CTX-M-1 (4 isolates), CTX-M-55 (2 isolates), CTX-M-27 (one isolate), SHV-12 (one isolate) and VEB beta-lactamases (one isolate). All K. p...
Source: Environmental Science and Pollution Research International - Category: Environmental Health Authors: Tags: Environ Sci Pollut Res Int Source Type: research