The enzymatic modification of aminoglycosides by aminoglycoside-acetyltransferases
(AAC), aminoglycoside-adenyltransferases (AAD), and
aminoglycoside-phosphotransferases (APH), is the most common resistance mechanism in
P. aeruginosa and these enzymes can be coded on
mobile genetic elements that contribute to their dispersion. One hundred and thirty
seven P. aeruginosa isolates from the University Hospital, Cumana,
Venezuela (HUAPA) were evaluated. Antimicrobial susceptibility was determined by the
disk diffusion method and theaac, aadB and
aph genes were detected by PCR. Most of the P.
aeruginosa isolates (33/137) were identified from the Intensive Care Unit
(ICU), mainly from discharges (96/137). The frequency of resistant P.
aeruginosaisolates was found to be higher for the aminoglycosides
tobramycin and amikacin (30.7 and 29.9%, respectively). Phenotype VI, resistant to
these antibiotics, was the most frequent (14/49), followed by phenotype I, resistant
to all the aminoglycosides tested (12/49). The
aac(6´)-Ib,aphA1 and aadB genes
were the most frequently detected, and the simultaneous presence of several
resistance genes in the same isolate was demonstrated. Aminoglycoside resistance in
isolates ofP. aeruginosa at the HUAPA is partly due to the presence
of the aac(6´)-Ib, aphA1 andaadB
genes, but the high rates of antimicrobial resistance suggest the existence of
several mechanisms acting together. This is the first report of aminoglycoside
resistance genes in Venezuela and one of the few in Latin America.
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