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Genetic characterization of plasmid-mediated fluoroquinolone efflux pump QepA among ESBL-producing Escherichia coli isolates in Mexico

  • Clinical Microbiology - Research Paper
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Abstract

Antimicrobial resistance is a major global public health problem, with fluoroquinolone-resistant strains of Escherichia coli posing a significant threat. This study examines the genetic characterization of ESBL-producing E. coli isolates in Mexican hospitals, which are resistant to both cephalosporins and fluoroquinolones. A total of 23 ESBL-producing E. coli isolates were found to be positive for the qepA gene, which confers resistance to fluoroquinolones. These isolates exhibited drug resistance phenotypes and belonged to specific sequence types and phylogenetic groups. The genetic context of the qepA gene was identified in a novel genetic context flanked by IS26 sequences. Mating experiments showed the co-transfer of qepA1 and chrA determinants alongside blaCTX-M-15 genes, emphasizing the potential for these genetic structures to spread among Enterobacterales. The emergence of multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria carrying these resistance genes is a significant clinical concern for public healthcare systems.

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Acknowledgements

Bacterial Resistance Consortium: Carpermor, Laboratorio de Referencia Internacional, Cd de México. Felipe J. Uribe-Salas; ISTE-S, ISSSTESON, Hermosillo, Sonora. M.C. Moisés Navarro; Instituto Nacional de Cancerología (INCan), Cd de México. Dra. Patricia Cornejo-Juárez; Sanatorio Durango (SD-DF), Cd de México. Dr. Octavio Novoa-Farías; Hospital de Pediatría, Centro Médico Nacional Siglo XXI; Ciudad de México. Dr. Fortino Solórzano; Hospital Regional de Alta Especialidad, Oaxaca, Q. Sofía Cruz

Funding

This work was supported by grant 256988 from SEP-CONACyT (Secretaría de Educación Pública, Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología).

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Author notes

  1. Josefina Duran-Bedolla Ulises and Garza-Ramos contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departamento de Diagnóstico Epidemiológico, Centro de Investigación Sobre Enfermedades Infecciosas (CISEI), Instituto Nacional de Salud Pública (INSP), Av. Universidad # 655, Col. Sta. Ma. Ahuacatitlán. C.P, 62100, Cuernavaca, Morelos, México

    Josefina Duran-Bedolla, Ulises Garza-Ramos, Jesús Silva-Sánchez, Fernando Reyna-Flores, Alejandro Sánchez-Pérez & Humberto Barrios-Camacho

  2. Programa de Genómica Evolutiva, Centro de Ciencias Genómicas, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Cuernavaca, Morelos, México

    Luis Lozano

Authors
  1. Josefina Duran-Bedolla
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  2. Ulises Garza-Ramos
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Bacterial Resistance Consortium

  • Felipe J. Uribe-Salas
  • , Moisés Navarro
  • , Patricia Cornejo-Juárez
  • , Octavio Novoa-Farías
  • , Fortino Solórzano
  •  & Sofía Cruz

Contributions

Conceptualization: HBC, JSS, UGR; methodology: HBC, JDB, LL, FRF, ASP; writing—original draft preparation: HBC, JDB; writing—review and editing: HBC, JDB, UGR; funding acquisition: JSS; supervision: HBC.

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Correspondence to Humberto Barrios-Camacho.

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Duran-Bedolla, J., Garza-Ramos, U., Silva-Sánchez, J. et al. Genetic characterization of plasmid-mediated fluoroquinolone efflux pump QepA among ESBL-producing Escherichia coli isolates in Mexico. Braz J Microbiol 54, 2791–2797 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42770-023-01115-x

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