Prevalence and molecular characteristics of carbapenem-resistant isolated from dogs in South Korea.

Importance: Carbapenem-resistant are emerging as a global public health risk. Therefore, assessing the prevalence of carbapenem-resistant (CRE) in both humans and animals is important.

Objective: We aimed to ascertain the occurrence and characteristics of CRE isolated from companion animals, dogs and cats.

Methods: strains were tested for antimicrobial susceptibility using the broth microdilution technique. Antimicrobial resistance genes were detected by polymerase chain reaction and sequencing analysis. The molecular characteristics of CRE were determined using multi-locus sequence typing, replicon typing, and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE).

Results: In total, 13 CRE isolates (0.13%) were identified from dogs possessing along with β-lactamase genes, mostly (92.2%) and (53.8%). The commonly observed mutations were S83L and D87N in , S80I in , and S458A in . CRE carried non-beta-lactam resistance genes, with the majority being (B) (100%), (84.6%), and (53.8%). Nine different PFGE patterns (P1-P9), IncX3-type plasmids (69.2%), and ST410 (84.6%) were predominantly detected.

Conclusions And Relevance: This investigation provides significant insight into the prevalence and molecular characteristics of -carrying in dogs. The co-existence of and other antimicrobial resistance genes in potentially poses severe health hazards to humans.