Epidemiology of Klebsiella michiganensis Carrying Multidrug-Resistant IncHI5 Plasmids in the Southeast Coastal Area of China

Abstract

Purpose This study aimed to explore the genomic characterization of multidrug-resistant IncHI5-carrying Klebsiella michiganensis strains and detailed genomic dissection of the IncHI5 plasmids. Materials and Methods Through whole-genome sequencing, the IncHI5 plasmid pK92-qnrS was obtained from a single clinical K. michiganensis isolate K92. All complete genomes of K. michiganensis strains from the Genome database of NCBI were collected and used to construct a maximum likelihood (ML) phylogenetic tree. The epidemiology and geographic distribution of all the K. michiganensis strains were conducted. An extensive comparison of the seven IncHI5 plasmids of K. michiganensis (one from this study, six from GenBank) was applied. Results This study revealed that all K. michiganensis strains carrying IncHI5 plasmids from different clonal groups were located in the southeast coastal area of China. The backbone regions of IncHI5 plasmids were composed of replicon ( repHI5B and repFIB ), partition ( parABC ), and conjugal transfer ( tra1 / tra2 ). The main accessory resistant regions of IncHI5 could be divided into two categories, Tn 1696 -related region and Tn 6535 -related region. These seven IncHI5 plasmids carried multiple drug-resistance genes which were all mediated by the mobile genetic elements (MGEs). Conclusion Data presented here help to provide an overall in-depth understanding of epidemiology and geographic distribution of IncHI5-carrying K. michiganensis and the structure and evolutionary history of IncHI5 plasmids.

A clinical KPC-producing Klebsiella michiganensis strain carrying IncFII/IncFIA (HI1)/IncFIB (K) multiple replicon plasmid

“…Klebsiella michiganensis has appeared in parts of the world ( Ccorahua-Santo et al, 2017 ; King et al, 2021 ; Luo et al, 2022 ), there are highly homology and similarities in the molecular characteristics between K. michiganensis and K. pneumoniae . Some K. michiganensis strains have been found in plants or ecosystems ( Kang et al, 2020 ; Salgueiro et al, 2020 ; Liu, L. et al, 2021 ), but the majority have been found in patients ( Abed et al, 2021 ).…”