DETECTION OF PLASMID MEDIATED QUINOLONE RESISTANCE GENES AMONG KLEBSIELLA PNEUMONIAE ISOLATES COLLECTED FROM URINARY TRACT INFECTIONS

Background and Aim:Urinary tract infections (UTIs), including cystitis and pyelonephritis, are among the most common infectious diseases in human. Klebsiella pneumoniae is an opportunistic microorganism cause of UTI. Multi drug resistance K. pneumoniae isolates have been reported and the rate of them is increasing worldwide. The aim of this study was assessment the rate of resistance to quinolone antibiotics and frequency of quinolone resistance genes qnrA, qnrB and qnrS in K. pneumoniae isolates obtained from UTI patients.Methods:In this study, 100 K. pneumoniae isolates were collected from UTI patients from different hospitals in Tehran, Iran and were confirmed by convectional biochemical tests. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing for quinolone antibiotics ciprofloxacin and norfloxacin was determined by disk diffusion method. Then, the presence of qnrA, qnrB and qnrS genes among the isolates was investigated using PCR with specific primers.Results:Out of 100 isolates of K. pneumoniae, resistance rates to ciprofloxacin and norfloxacin antibiotics were 31% and 32%, respectively. The qnrB and qnrS genes were found in 22 (71%) and 16 (51.6%) of the 31 resistant isolates to both ciprofloxacin and norfloxacin. In this study, qnrA gene was not found among the isolates tested.Conclusion:With respect to the significant rate of resistance to quinolone antibiotics and the high frequency of qnr genes in K. pneumoniae isolates, quinolones agents should be used with caution.

کلیدواژه ها:

Urinary tract infection ، K. pneumoniae ، Antimicrobial resistance ، Quinolone