Characterization of metallo-β-lactamases-encoding genes blaIMP-1 and blaVIM-1 amongst Klebsiella pneumoniae from abattoir samples of Ebonyi state, southeastern Nigeria

Abstract

BackgroundThe carbapenems are often the last line of treatment for a variety of bacterial infections including those caused by multidrug resistant organisms. Metallo-β-lactamases (MBLs) are carbapenemases produced by Gram negative bacteria which mediate the resistance to the carbapenems such as imipenem. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of Klebsiella pneumoniae from abattoir samples that harboured blaIMP-1 and blaVIM-1 MBL genes by multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique. Materials and methodsA total of 120 anal swabs of cow from a local abattoir of Ebonyi state, Nigeria were bacteriologically analyzed for the isolation of Klebsiella pneumoniae. MBL production was detected using the modified Hodges test while antimicrobial susceptibility was performed by the disk diffusion technique. The prevalence of blaIMP-1 and blaVIM-1 genes was confirmed using multiplex PCR technique. ResultsA total of 59 isolates of Klebsiella pneumoniae were recovered from the anal swab samples. These isolates were highly resistant to cefotaxime (91.5%). The isolates also showed reduced susceptibility to the carbapenems including ertapenem (62.7%), meropenem (66.1%) and imipenem (78%). MBL was phenotypically detected in a total of 11 (18.6%) isolates that were carbapenem-resistant. The blaIMP-1 gene was detected in 9 (15.3%) isolates of Klebsiella pneumonia by multiplex PCR. Meanwhile, the blaVIM-1 gene was not detected in any isolates. ConclusionThese notable findings have an important implication for the dissemination of blaIMP-1 gene amongst Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates since these bacteria are highly prevalent in food-producing animals and could be zoonotically transmitted to humans through the food chain.