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Updated: Aug 7, 2026

Isolation and Identification of Waterborne Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria and Molecular Characterization of their Antibiotic Resistance Genes
Published on: March 3, 2023
bla(OXA-51)-type beta-lactamase genes are ubiquitous and vary within a strain in Acinetobacter baumannii
Andrea Karina Merkier1, Daniela Centrón
1Departamento de Microbiología, Parasitología e Inmunología, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Paraguay 2155, P-12, Capital Federal, Argentina.
Abstract:
We investigated the spread of bla(OXA-51)-type beta-lactamase genes in 200 Acinetobacter spp. clinical strains isolated in Argentina from 1982 to 2005. bla(OXA-51)-type genes were present in all Acinetobacter baumannii isolates tested (n=194), whereas they were not detected in two Acinetobacter haemolyticus, two genomic species 10 or two Acinetobacter lwoffii isolates. The bla(OXA-51)-type alleles varied within a strain and were found in six different A. baumannii pulsed-field gel electrophoresis clones that were susceptible or resistant to imipenem, suggesting a controversial role in imipenem resistance. Our findings agree with previous reports showing that bla(OXA-51)-type genes are naturally harboured by A. baumannii isolates from various geographical origins and support the presence of a direct reservoir of beta-lactam resistance genes within the nosocomial environment.
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