Characterization of Extended-Spectrum β-Lactamase-Producing Uropathogenic Among Iranian Kidney Transplant Patients.

Introduction: The aim of this study was to investigate the antimicrobial susceptibility pattern and the presence of ESBLs among the uropathogenic (UPEC) isolated from kidney transplant patients (KTP) and community-acquired urinary tract infections (UTIs) using phenotypic and molecular methods.

Materials And Methods: A total of 111 pure cultures of UPEC isolates were collected from 65 and 46 of non-KTP and KTPs with UTIs. The pattern and ESBL production of the strains were evaluated. PCR reaction to detect the presence of , , and genes was performed.

Results: The results revealed that most of UPEC isolates obtained from KTPs and control group were resistant to trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole (84.8% vs 46.2%), while carbapenems (100% sensitivity) were the most effective against UPEC isolates. ESBL-producing strains were significantly more frequent in KTPs compared with control group (43.5% vs 23.1%, = 0.021). The molecular results revealed that 53.2% (59/111), 45% (50/111), and 5.4% (6/111) of isolates harbored , , and genes, respectively. Of the genes investigated, and genes were significantly higher among KTP than the control group.

Conclusion: Our results showed a high proportion of multidrug-resistant and ESBL-producing isolates, which most of them harbor blaCTX-M. A significant high co-resistance to different classes of antibiotics was reported from ESBL-producing UPEC from KTPs, which remains a serious clinical challenge.