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Pseudomonas aeruginosa diversity in distinct paediatric patient groups

G A Tramper-Stranders1, C K van der Ent, T F W Wolfs

  • 1Department of Paediatric Respiratory Medicine, Wilhelmina Children's Hospital, University Medical Centre Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands. g.tramper@umcutrecht.nl

Clinical Microbiology and Infection : the Official Publication of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases
|August 30, 2008
PubMed

Insights

Clonal Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates primarily infect cystic fibrosis (CF) patients and are not found in other pediatric groups. This study highlights the limited transmission of these specific CF pathogen clones.

Area of Science:

  • Medical Microbiology
  • Infectious Diseases
  • Genetics

Background:

  • Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a significant opportunistic pathogen, particularly in immunocompromised individuals and those with compromised host defenses.
  • Cystic fibrosis (CF) patients are known to harbor specific clonal isolates of P. aeruginosa, but their presence in other patient populations remains unclear.
  • Understanding the diversity and clonality of P. aeruginosa is crucial for infection control and treatment strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the genotypic diversity and clonal structure of Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates across five distinct pediatric patient groups.
  • To determine if clonal P. aeruginosa isolates found in cystic fibrosis patients also infect non-CF patient groups.
  • To assess the prevalence and transmission patterns of P. aeruginosa clones in susceptible pediatric populations.

Main Methods:

  • Culturing and phenotypic characterization of P. aeruginosa isolates from 157 pediatric patients across five groups: CF (first infection and chronic), urinary tract infection, chronic suppurative otitis media, and intensive-care/immunodeficiency.
  • Antimicrobial resistance testing and molecular typing using pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) for genetic relatedness.
  • Calculation of Simpson's diversity index to quantify genotypic diversity within each patient group.

Main Results:

  • CF-chronic patients exhibited the highest number of distinct P. aeruginosa phenotypes and genotypes.
  • Isolates from the CF-chronic group showed significantly lower diversity compared to other patient groups.
  • Clonal P. aeruginosa isolates were identified in CF patients (both first infection and chronic groups) but not in the other three non-CF pediatric groups.
  • No characteristic antimicrobial resistance patterns were associated with specific patient groups or clonal isolates.

Conclusions:

  • Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates from chronically infected CF patients display reduced genotypic diversity.
  • Clonal P. aeruginosa isolates are specific to cystic fibrosis patient cohorts and do not appear to transmit to non-CF pediatric patient groups.
  • The study did not observe the transmission of clonal CF isolates to other investigated patient populations, suggesting distinct epidemiological patterns.

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