Wide dissemination of OXA-type carbapenemases in clinical Acinetobacter spp. isolates from South Korea

Carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter spp. are being increasingly reported worldwide, including in South Korea, where we examined 144 representative isolates collected in a nationwide hospital survey in 2005. Metallo-beta-lactamases were detected in only 19.4% of isolates, none of which were Acinetobacter baumannii, whereas 74.3% of isolates (mostly A. baumannii) expressed bla(OXA) carbapenemase genes. Among the latter, 47 had bla(OXA-23)-like genes and 56 had upregulated bla(OXA-51)-like variants, including bla(OXA-66), (-83), (-109) and (-115); bla(OXA-115) was a novel variant, detected in two isolates. bla(OXA-72) (bla(OXA-40)-like) was detected in only a single Acinetobacter baylyi isolate, whilst three Acinetobacter calcoaceticus isolates had both bla(VIM-2)-like and bla(OXA-58) genes. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) suggested the spread of A. baumannii clones with OXA carbapenemases within and between hospitals. In conclusion, the recent increase in imipenem-resistant Acinetobacter spp. from South Korea is mostly due to OXA-type carbapenemases. ; open