Comparative genomics analysis of Acinetobacter haemolyticus isolates from sputum samples of respiratory patients

Highlights

• The whole genome of two Acinetobacter haemolyticus isolates were sequenced.

• Comparative genomics analysis of the two Acinetobacter haemolyticus isolates were performed.

• The enhancement of pathogenicity and resistance may be due to plasmid-mediated horizontal gene transfer.

• An integron and T4SS associated with gene transfer was predicted in TJR01.

• The two A. haemolyticus strains show a close affinity.

Abstract

Acinetobacter haemolyticus (A. haemolyticus) is a significant Acinetobacter pathogen, and the resistance of A. haemolyticus continues to rise due to abuse of antibiotics and the frequent gene exchange between bacteria in hospital. In this study, we performed complete genome sequencing of two A. haemolyticus strains TJR01 and TJS01 to improve our understanding of pathogenic and resistance of A. haemolyticus. Both TJR01 and TJS01 contain one chromosome and two plasmids. Compared to TJS01, more virulence factors (VFs) associated pathogenicity and resistant genes were predicted in TJR01 due to T4SS and integron associated with combination and transport. Antimicrobial susceptibility results were consistent with sequencing. We suppose TJS01 was a susceptive strain and TJR01 was an acquired multidrug resistance strain due to plasmid-mediated horizontal gene transfer. We hope these findings may be helpful for clinical treatment of A. haemolyticus infection and reduce the risk of potential outbreak infection.