# Clonal diversity of carbapenemase-producing Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolated from clinical samples in a third level hospital in Peru

## TL;DR

This study analyzed the clonal diversity of antibiotic-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa in a Peruvian hospital and found no evidence of clonal spread.

## Contribution

The study provides insights into the clonal diversity of carbapenemase-producing P. aeruginosa in a Peruvian hospital setting.

## Key findings

- Twenty-four strains showed 19 different molecular profiles.
- Four clonal groups were identified among the isolates.
- No clonal dissemination was observed among the strains.

## Abstract

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an opportunistic pathogen associated with health care infections, it has high levels of antimicrobial resistance and is associated with hospital outbreaks. Early outbreak detection is a usual problem in hospitals, therefore, this study aimed to assess the clonal relationship of carbapenemase-producing P. aeruginosa in a tertiary hospital in Lima, Peru. Twenty-four metallo β-lactamase-producing P. aeruginosa strains isolated from hospitalized patients were collected. The clonal relation was determined using the REP-PCR technique. REP-PCR band profiles were normalized, analyzed and combined using BioNumerics version 7.6 software. Molecular identification showed 19 different profiles and four clonal groups. We determined polyclonality among isolates. We did not find clonal dissemination among the metallo-β-lactamase-producing P. aeruginosa strains circulating in the hospital.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa es un patógeno oportunista relacionado con infecciones de atención en salud, tiene elevados niveles de resistencia a los antimicrobianos y se asocia a brotes hospitalarios. La detección temprana de brotes es un problema en la rutina de los hospitales, por lo que se investigó la relación clonal de P. aeruginosa productora de carbapenemasas en un hospital de tercer nivel en Lima, Perú. Se recolectaron 24 cepas de P. aeruginosa productoras de metalo β-lactamasas aisladas de pacientes hospitalizados y se determinó la relación clonal utilizando la técnica REP-PCR. Los perfiles de bandas REP-PCR fueron normalizados, analizados y combinados mediante el programa BioNumerics versión 7,6. La identificación molecular mostró 19 perfiles diferentes y se encontraron cuatro grupos clonales. Se determinó la policlonalidad entre los aislados. No se encontró diseminación clonal entre las cepas de P. aeruginosa productoras de metalo-β-lactamasas que circulan en el hospital.