Document Type

Article

Publication Date

6-11-2009

Abstract

The emergence of Escherichia coli that produce extended spectrum β-lactamases (ESBLs) and are multidrug resistant (MDR)poses antibiotic management problems. Forty-seven E. coli isolates from various public hospitals in Malaysia were studied. All isolates were sensitive to imipenem whereas 36 were MDR (resistant to 2 or more classes of antibiotics). PCR detection using gene-specific primers showed that 87.5% of the ESBL-producing E. coli harbored the blaTEM gene. Other ESBL-encoding genes detected were blaOXA, blaSHV, and blaCTX-M. Integron-encoded integrases were detected in 55.3% of isolates, with class 1 integron encoded intI1 integrase being the majority. Amplification and sequence analysis of the 5�CS region of the integrons showed known antibiotic resistance-encoding gene cassettes of various sizes that were inserted within the respective integrons. Conjugation and transformation experiments indicated that some of the antibiotic resistance genes were likely plasmid-encoded and transmissible. All 47 isolates were subtyped by PFGE and PCR-based fingerprinting using random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD), repetitive extragenic palindromes (REPs), and enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus (ERIC). These isolates were very diverse and heterogeneous. PFGE, ERIC, and REP-PCR methods were more discriminative than RAPD in subtyping the E. coli isolates.

Divisions

InstituteofBiologicalSciences

Funders

Malaysian Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MOSTI),Malaysian Toray Science Foundation,University of Malaya

Publication Title

Journal of Biomedicine and Biotechnology

Volume

2009

Issue

165637

Publisher

Hindawi Publishing Corporation

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