Antibiotic resistance in the invasive bacteria Escherichia coli.

Objectives: The beta-lactamases with extended spectrum of activity (ESBL) are medically one of the most important group of enzymes. Another group of beta-lactamases representing of Enterobacteriaceae is group of the AmpC-type cephalosporinases. The presented study provides identification and determination of the spectrum of resistance against different and clinically used antimicrobial drugs in the clinical isolates of Escherichia coli.

Methods: These isolates had origin in different departments of the L. Pasteur University Hospital in Košice. The goal was the detection of beta-lactamase production with extended-spectrum effect and testing of AmpC-type cephalosporinases by several phenotypic tests in clinical isolates. MALDI-TOF MS analysis was performed on a Microflex MALDI Biotyper. Samples were positively tested for ESBL with the use of the disc diffusion method. PCR were performed with a series of primers designed for the detection of Ambler class A, B and C beta-lactamase genes.

Results: For all 485 isolates, we determined the production of ESBL, which we detected in 166 E. coli isolates, which represents a 34.2% prevalence of ESBL production. It is clear from the results that the prevalence of ESBL-producing E. coli out of the total number of E. coli investigated reached 34.2%. In the monitored period, we confirmed at least one resistance gene from 485 E. coli in 188 positive isolates.

Conclusions: We describe a complex ESBL epidemiology. The study revealed a high rate of ESBL-producing E. coli isolates; bla and bla enzymes dominated in ESBL-positive E. coli isolates in the L. Pasteur University Hospital in Košice.