Carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae, U.S. rivers.

Our study was initiated by previous isolation of 30 imipenem-resistant, gram-negative rods from 7 of 16 U.S. rivers sampled from 1999 to 2001.

Antibiotic resistance of gram-negative bacteria in rivers, United States.

Bacteria with intrinsic resistance to antibiotics are found in nature. Such organisms may acquire additional resistance genes from bacteria introduced into soil or water, and the resident bacteria may be the reservoir or source of widespread resistant organisms found in many environments. We isolated antibiotic-resistant bacteria in freshwater samples from 16 U.