Isolation of the first New Delhi metallo-ß-lactamase-1 (NDM-1)-producing and colistin-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae sequence type ST15 from a digestive carrier in Albania, May 2018.

OBJECTIVES

Carbapenemases represent a public health threat, as they can spread through horizontal gene transfer and cause outbreaks. New Delhi metallo-ß-lactamase-1 (NDM-1) is a metallo-ß-lactamase that has spread rapidly in the last decade, causing worldwide alarm. This study aimed to describe the first isolate of NDM-1-producing and extensively drug resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae in Albania, its clinical context and genetic characterization.

METHODS

Strain was isolated from both oral and rectal intensive care unit admission screening swabs of a 70-year-old male patient with no history of international travel in the previous 6 months. Sequencing was performed by Illumina NextSeq500 platform, with a paired-end run of 2 by 150bp, after Nextera XT paired-end library preparation. Sequencing reads were assembled using SPAdes Genome (version 3.6.1) with accurate de novo settings. The assembled contigs were uploaded into the online tools: BIGSdb-Kp, ResFinder and PlasmidFinder.

RESULTS

Isolate was resistant to all tested antibiotics but tigecycline and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole. Sequencing revealed the presence of acquired resistance genes conferring resistance to β-lactams (blaNDM-1, blaCMY-6, blaCTX-M-15and blaSHV-28), aminoglycosides (rmtC, aac(6')-Ib3), fluoroquinolones (oqxA, oqxB, aac(6')-Ib-cr), fosfomycin (fosA) and sulfonamides (sul1). The blaNDM-1 gene was located on an IncA/C2 plasmid. Plasmid mediated mcr-1 to mcr-8 genes were absent in both isolates. Resistance to colistin was due to an amino acid substitution (Thr157Pro) in PmrB protein.

CONCLUSIONS

NDM-1-producing Enterobacteriaceae are spreading in the Balkans. Identification of NDM-1-producing and extensively drug resistant K. pneumoniae ST15 in Albania is a cause for serious concern. There should be a continuous national and Balkan multinational surveillance of blaNDM-1-carrying isolates.