At the end of November 2019, a novel coronavirus responsible for respiratory tract infections emerged in China. Despite drastic containment measures, this virus, known as severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), spread in Asia and Europe. The pandemic is ongoing with a particular hotspot in southern Europe and America in spring 2020. Many studies predicted an epidemic in Africa similar to that currently seen in Europe and the USA. However, reported data do not confirm these predictions. Several hypotheses that could explain the later emergence and spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in African countries are being discussed, including the lack of health-care infrastructure capable of clinically detecting and confirming COVID-19 cases, the implementation of social distancing and hygiene, international air traffic flows, the climate, the relatively young and rural population, the genetic polymorphism of the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 receptor, cross-immunity and the use of antimalarial drugs.

In this study, we report the detection of mcr-1 gene producing E. coli from wild animals.

ObjectivesThe aims of this study were to investigate the occurrence of carbapenem-resistant Gram-negative bacilli (GNB) isolated from inpatients and outpatients in Algeria between July and September 2015, and to screen their resistance mechanisms and genetic relatedness.Materials and methodsA total of 68 non-redundant isolates were identified using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF) antibiotic susceptibility testing was performed using disk diffusion and Etest methods. Carbapenemase activity was carried out using modified Carba NP test, EDTA assay, and the modified Hodge test. Molecular characterization of carbapenemases and extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL) genes were detected by standard PCR and sequencing. Genotyping of carbapenem-resistant isolates was performed by multilocus sequence typing (MLST) analysis.ResultsOf the 68 GNB isolates, 13 (19%) showed reduced susceptibility to carbapenems, including, four Klebsiella pneumoniae, one Escherichia coli, six Acinetobacter baumannii, and two Pseudomonas aeruginosa. blaOXA-48 gene was detected in the five Enterobacteriaceae isolates, and blaOXA-23 was identified in all A. baumannii isolates. OprD mutations were revealed in the two P. aeruginosa isolates. A total of 11 out of the 13 carbapenem-resistant GNB were detected in inpatients, and the two remaining strains were isolated from outpatients. Molecular typing showed the presence of four sequence types (STs) among the OXA-48-producing K. pneumoniae isolates: ST101, ST147, ST163, and ST2017. ST533 was identified for the OXA-48 producing E. coli isolate. All of the A. baumannii and P. aeruginosa were assigned to the international clonal lineages ST2 and ST654, respectively.ConclusionThis study reports the first detection of the epidemic multidrug-resistant lineage, K. pneumoniae ST147 coproduced blaOXA-48 and ESBL genes in Algeria and represents the first description of OXA-48-producing E. coli ST533 and K. pneumoniae ST163 and ST2017. In addition, this study describes for the first time the emergence of OXA-48-producing E. coli and K. pneumoniae in the community in Algeria, leading to major problems for managing microbial infections.

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In developed countries, hematological malignancies (HM) account for 8 to 10% of cancers diagnosed annually and one-third of patients with HM (HMP) are expected to die from their disease. The former wide spectrum "magic bullet," imipenem, has been ousted by the emergence of carbapenem resistant (CR) pathogens. In endemic areas, infections with CR-bacteria occur in vulnerable patients, notably in HMP, who suffer from high mortality related to infectious complications. In this work, we reviewed epidemiologic and clinical factors associated with CR-infections in adult HMP and data on CR-related mortality and antibiotic treatments in this population. We found that resistance profile of strains involved in HMP infections, mainly bacteremia, reflect local epidemiology. Significant risk factors for infections with CR-bacteria include sex male, age around 50 years old, acute leukemia, selvage chemotherapy, neutropenia, and digestive colonization by CR-bacteria. Mortality rate is high in HMP infected with CR-Enterobacteriaceae, more particularly in case of acute myeloid leukemia and unresolved neutropenia, due to inappropriate empiric management and delayed administration of targeted antibiotics, such as tigecycline, colistin, or new associations of active drugs. Thus, we developed an algorithm for clinicians, assessing the incremental risk for CRbacterial infection occurrence and mortality in febrile HMP, to guide decisions related to empirical therapeutic strategies.

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The aim of the present study was to screen for the presence of carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae (CPE) isolates from wild boars and Barbary macaques in Algeria. Fecal samples were collected from wild boars (n = 168) and Barbary macaques (n = 212), in Bejaia, Algeria, between September 2014 and April 2016. The isolates were identified and antimicrobial susceptibility was determined. Carbapenem resistance determinants were studied using PCR and sequencing, while clonal relatedness was performed using multilocus sequence typing (MLST). PCR was used to investigate certain virulence genes. Three CPE isolates from three different samples (1.8%) recovered from wild boars were identified as Escherichia coli (two isolates) and Klebsiella pneumoniae (one isolate). These isolates were resistant to amoxicillin, amoxicillin-clavulanate, tobramycin, ertapenem, and meropenem. The results of PCR and sequencing analysis showed that all three isolates produced the OXA-48 enzyme. The MLST showed that the two E. coli isolates were assigned to the same sequence type, ST635, and belonged to phylogroup A, whereas K. pneumoniae strain belonged to ST13. The K. pneumoniae strain was positive for multiple virulence factors, whereas no virulence determinants were found in E. coli isolates. This is the first report of OXA-48-producing Enterobacteriaceae in wild animals from Algeria and Africa.

In this study, we report the usefulness of whole-genome sequencing in detection of antibiotic resistance mechanisms and in highlighting the emergence of the carbapenem and colistin-resistant K. pneumoniae clone ST512 in Israeli hospitals.