The Phylogenetic Relatedness of bla(NDM-1) Harboring Extended-Spectrum β-Lactamase Producing Uropathogenic Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae in the North of Iran

BACKGROUND: Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae as an important part of Enterobacterales family are important causes of both community- and hospital-acquired infections. The present study aimed to investigate the prevalence of antibiotics resistance and molecular characteristics of uropathogenic isolates of E. coli and K. pneumoniae in Iranian patients. METHODS: This cross-sectional study performed on 223 Escherichia coli and 68 Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates obtained from hospitalized patients in the north of Iran. The isolates were identified by standard microbiologic tests and confirmed by API 20E strip. Disk diffusion method was applied to determine antibiotic susceptibility pattern. The presence of β-lactamases encoding genes was evaluated by PCR method. Analysis of the mutations and homology among sequences was done by the CLC sequence viewer (Qiagen, Denmark), and phylogenetic trees were constructed by the neighbor-joining method (Bootstrap: 1000 times). RESULTS: The overall rates of extended-spectrum β-lactamases (ESBLs)-producing E. coli and K. pneumoniae isolates were 37.7% and 32.4%, respectively. The overall presence of bla(SHV), bla(NDM-1), and bla(OXA-1) genes was detected in 16 (5.5%), 12 (4.1%), and 48 (16.4%) of isolates, respectively. The neighbor-joining analysis for E. coli KU985246.1 strain showed that the most related bla(NDM-1) sequences were from China, Singapore, UK, Thailand, and Bangladesh. While K. pneumoniae KU985245.1 strains were mostly related to bla(NDM-1) sequences form Myanmar, and China. CONCLUSION: In summary, the remarkable rate of ESBL-producing uropathogenic Enterobacterales along with the first prevalence of NDM-1 β-lactamases can be a serious concern in our region.