Prevalence of OXA-type carbapenemase genes and genetic heterogeneity in clinical isolates of Acinetobacter spp. from Mangalore, India

The prevalence of OXA-type carbapenemase genes, ISAba1 insertion sequence, carbapenem resistance, biofilm forming ability and genetic heterogeneity in clinical isolates of Acinetobacter spp. from hospitals in Mangalore, South India was studied. Based on the presence of the bla(OXA-51) -like gene, the 62 isolates of Acinetobacter spp. were identified as 48 A. baumannii and 14 other Acinetobacter spp. The prevalence of bla(OXA-23) -like, bla(OXA-24) -like and bla(OXA-58) -like genes in A. baumannii was 47.9%, 22.9% and 4.2%, while in other Acinetobacter spp. it was 28.5%, 64.3% and 35.7% respectively. Several A. baumannii isolates (16/48) harbored the insertion sequence ISAba1 in the upstream region of the bla(OXA-23) -like gene. Resistance to meropenem was seen in 39.6% and 14.2% of A. baumannii and other Acinetobacter spp. isolates, respectively. The ability to form biofilm was observed to be higher among A. baumannii in comparison to other Acinetobacter spp. The present study shows that bla(OXA-23) -like genes are more common in A. baumannii,whereas bla(OXA-24) -like genes are common to other Acinetobacter spp. The study revealed genetic heterogeneity among the isolates, indicating multiple sources in the hospitals.