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Background and Objective: Acinetobacter has been considered an important nosocomial pathogen since 1970. This study aims to investigate the prevalence of Acinetobacter infection during 2017-2021, study the antibiogram of these bacteria, and study the impact of gender on infection. Materials and Methods: This is a retrospective study in which data of the clinical samples received in Al-Kafeel Hospital, Kerbala, Iraq, between April 2017 and February 2021 were searched for Acinetobacter infection and their antibiotic susceptibility testing. Results: The prevalence of Acinetobacter infection was 9.2% of cases. Male to Female ratio was 3:1, and there was a significant difference in Acinetobacter infection regarding gender. There were high resistance rates to major antibiotic classes. Maximum resistance was recorded for Amoxicillin (100%), followed by 3rd generation cephalosporins, including Cefotaxime (92.3%), Ceftriaxone (91.6%), Ceftazidime (91.3%), Cefixime (80%); in addition to growing resistance to carbapenems, Imipenem (42.8%) and Meropenem (62.2%). The lowest resistance rates were found to colistin sulfate (10%). There 80.7% of the isolates were multidrug-resistant MDR. Conclusion: Acinetobacter spp., is considered as fast emerging opportunistic agents with evolving drug resistance. Rationale use of antibiotics is important and necessary to prevent microbial resistance. Gender is considered a risk factor for Acinetobacter infection.

Introduction: Urinary tract infection is one of the most common bacterial infections in humans, and Escherichia coli is one of the most important factors. Therefore, the present study aimed to evaluate the diversity of Europathogenic E. coli genotypes based on iucA, iucB, iucC, and iucD genes. Materials & Methods: In this study, plates containing a positive culture of urinary tract infection of E. coli were collected from four treatment centers in Shiraz, Iran. After determining phenotypic and genotypic identity, 100 isolates of E. coli were isolated. The bacterial genome was extracted using a kit. After genetic confirmation of the isolates using 16S rRNA, antibiotic resistance and susceptibility were performed for 10 antibiotics out of 9 classes using the disk diffusion method according to the CLSI standard. Frequency investigation of the virulence factors (iuc gene) was performed through the PCR molecular method and specific primers. Findings: The prevalence rates of iucA, iucB, iucC, and iucD genes were estimated at 95%, 60%, 72%, and 92%, respectively. The amount of resistance of 10 antibiotics of azithromycin, ampicillin, cefotaxime, nalidixic acid, tetracycline, trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, cefepime, aztreonam, gentamicin, and nitrofurantoin were also determined at 95%, 86%, 68%, 66%, 65%, 64%, 51%, 46%, 44%, and 14%. In addition, 98% of the isolates had multidrug resistance. Discussions & Conclusions: The present study showed that the high prevalence of the iuc gene among E. coli strains indicated the importance of this gene in the pathogenesis and genetic diversity of this bacterium.

Background and purpose: Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an opportunistic pathogen and the second leading cause of nosocomial infections, especially in the intensive care unit (ICU), and is responsible for high mortality rates. The aim of this study was to determine the pattern of antibiotic susceptibility and prevalence of multiple drug resistance strains of P. aeruginosa isolated from hospitalized patients in Mazandaran province, Iran 2020. Materials and methods: In this descriptive cross-sectional study, 80 strains of P. aeruginosa were collected from different clinical specimens. Antibiotic susceptibility of the isolates was determined by disk agar diffusion method according to the instructions of Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI). Finally, based on the resistance pattern, multi-drug resistant (MDR), extensive-drug resistant (XDR), and pandrug-resistant (PDR) isolates were identified. Results: Out of 80 P. aeruginosa isolates, the highest number of samples was collected from ICU (58.75%). The highest antibiotic resistance was observed against ticarcillin-clavulanate (95%), meropenem (80%), and ceftazidime (75%). Piperacillin-tazobactam and cefpime showed the highest inhibitory effect against P. aeruginosa isolates with 57.5% and 51.25% sensitivity, respectively. Altogether, 88.75% and 46.25% of the isolates were categorized as MDR and XDR, respectively. In this study, PDR phenotype was not observed among our tested strains. Conclusion: This study showed that P. aeruginosa strains are resistant to a wide range of antibiotics. Given the role of this bacterium in nosocomial infections, especially in ICU, it is necessary to take immediate measures for timely identification, definitive treatment with appropriate antibiotics, and preventing the spread of resistant strains of this bacterium. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and purpose: The prevalence of antibiotic resistance in Acinetobacter baumannii is increasing worldwide, causing significant clinical problems. This study aimed to determine the antibiotic resistance pattern of clinical A. baumannii isolated from different different wards in Sari hospitals. Materials and methods: This study was performed on 100 clinical A. baumannii isolated from Sari hospitals, north of Iran, 2018. The clinical isolates were identified by biochemical tests, while identification of the blaOXA-51 gene was performed by PCR for the final confirmation of the isolates. Antibiotic susceptibility pattern of the isolates was determined by the disk agar diffusion method. Data were analyzed in SPSS applying Chi-square test. Results: Among 100 clinical isolates of A. baumannii, the lowest resistance rate (75%) was detected against imipenem, while the highest resistance rate (100%) was observed against ciprofloxacin. Resistance rates to meropenem, doripenem, levofloxacin, cefotaxime, ceftazidime, cefepime, piperacillin, piperacillin/ tazobactam, and trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole were 97, 96, 93, 93, 76, 92, 86, 78, and 92%, respectively. In this study, the highest and lowest cases of MDR and XDR isolates were found in urine and blood samples, respectively, while the highest and lowest cases of MDR and XDR in terms of hospital departments were found in ICU and surgery, respectively. Conclusion: Due to the high prevalence of multidrug resistant isolates, using antibiogram prior to antibiotic administration and proper use of antibiotics for the treatment of infections caused by Acinetobacter baumannii should be seriously considered.

Background and Aims: Flow cytometry is a rapid method that can analyze thousands of cells per second and can be used for determination of microbial populations and determination of bacterial antimicrobial susceptibility. In this study antibiotic resistance pattern of Acinetobacter baumannii isolates by flow cytometer was evaluated. Materials and Methods: 55 isolates of Acinetobacter baumannii were isolated from clinical specimen of patients and were identified by biochemical tests. Antibiotic resistance patterns were studied by disc diffusion method and MDR strains were selected. MIC of Meropenem and Piperacillin were determined. Also antibiotic resistance pattern of isolates was determined by coloring with Rhodamine-123 and flow cytometry. Results: 98% of isolates were MDR. The MIC ranges for maropenem were 8 - 256 μg/mL and for piperacillin were 128-1024 μg/mL. By flow cytometry it was demonstrated that at concentrations of 8, 4 and 2 μg/mL of meropenem, only 1.96%, 1.44% and 0.59%, of cells were killed respectively. At concentrations of 64,128 and 16 μg/mL of piperacillin, 13.8%, 11.3% and 5.9%of cells were killed respectively. Reducing the number of living bacteria was observed with increasing concentrations of both antibiotics. Conclusion: The similarity between the results of flow cytometry and both agar and broth antibacterial susceptibility methods showed flow cytometry as a reliable and rapid test that can be used for this purpose.

Background and purpose: The prevalence of antibiotic resistance in Acinetobacter baumannii is increasing worldwide, causing significant clinical problems. This study aimed to determine the antibiotic resistance pattern of clinical A. baumannii isolated from different different wards in Sari hospitals. Materials and methods: This study was performed on 100 clinical A. baumannii isolated from Sari hospitals, north of Iran, 2018. The clinical isolates were identified by biochemical tests, while identification of the blaOXA-51 gene was performed by PCR for the final confirmation of the isolates. Antibiotic susceptibility pattern of the isolates was determined by the disk agar diffusion method. Data were analyzed in SPSS applying Chi-square test. Results: Among 100 clinical isolates of A. baumannii, the lowest resistance rate (75%) was detected against imipenem, while the highest resistance rate (100%) was observed against ciprofloxacin. Resistance rates to meropenem, doripenem, levofloxacin, cefotaxime, ceftazidime, cefepime, piperacillin, piperacillin/ tazobactam, and trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole were 97, 96, 93, 93, 76, 92, 86, 78, and 92%, respectively. In this study, the highest and lowest cases of MDR and XDR isolates were found in urine and blood samples, respectively, while the highest and lowest cases of MDR and XDR in terms of hospital departments were found in ICU and surgery, respectively. Conclusion: Due to the high prevalence of multidrug resistant isolates, using antibiogram prior to antibiotic administration and proper use of antibiotics for the treatment of infections caused by Acinetobacter baumannii should be seriously considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background: Antibiotic resistance rates in E. coli are rapidly rising, especially with regard to fluoroquinolones. One of the mechanisms that lead to antibiotic resistance is efflux pumps. The aim of this study was phonotypic and genotypic analysis of efflux pump role in fluoroquinolones resistance of E. coli strains isolated from hospitalized patients in Kermanshah 2013. Materials and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 100 isolates of E. coli were collected from hospitalized patients from Kermanshah. All isolates were identified by standard biochemical tests. The antimicrobial susceptibility patterns were determined by disk diffusion method according to CLSI guidelines. The presence of Efflux pump genes was determined by a PCR method. Results: The rates of resistance to Ceftazidime, Nalidixic Acid, Ciprofloxacin, Norfloxacin, Ofloxacin, Gentamicin, and Tetracycline were 73%, 67%, 55%, 54%, 45%, 38%, and 24%, respectively. According to the results of PCR test, of 100 E. coli isolates, 99% of isolates were positive for acrA, 98% for acrB, 95% for acrE, 98% for acrF, 94% for mdfA, 96% for norE, and 96% for tolC. Conclusion: In Strains with positive gene acrA, acrB, acrA, acrB, tolC, mdfA, norE, the presence of efflux pump inhibitor reduced the amount of resistance to antibiotics. So, efflux pumps are important in antibiotic resistance.

Background and Aims: Flow cytometry is a rapid method that can analyze thousands of cells per second and can be used for determination of microbial populations and determination of bacterial antimicrobial susceptibility. In this study antibiotic resistance pattern of Acinetobacter baumannii isolates by flow cytometer was evaluated. Materials and Methods: 55 isolates of A. baumannii were isolated from clinical specimen of patients and were identified by biochemical tests. Antibiotic resistance patterns were studied by disc diffusion method and MDR strains were selected. MIC of Meropenem -Tazobactam and Piperacillin were determined. Also antibiotic resistance pattern of isolates was determined by coloring with Rhodamine-123 and flow cytometry. Excel software and STDV test were used to calculate the standard deviation of antibiotic resistance and MIC results.To evaluate the agreement between the results of antibiotic resistance pattern using disk diffusion methods and the MIC and Flow cytometry category agreement was used. Results: 98% of isolates were MDR. The MIC ranges for maropenem were 8 - 256 μg/mL and for Piperacilllin-tazobactam were 128-1024 μg/mL. By flow cytometry it was demonstrated that at concentrations of 8, 4 and 2 μg/mL of meropenem, only 1.96%, 1.44% and 0.59%, of cells were killed respectively. At concentrations of 64,128 and 16 μg/mL of piperacillin, 13.8%, 11.3% and 5.9%of cells were killed respectively. Reducing the number of living bacteria was observed with increasing concentrations of both antibiotics. Conclusion: The similarity between the results of flow cytometry and both agar and broth antibacterial susceptibility methods showed flow cytometry as a reliable and rapid test that can be used for this purpose. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Infertility is defined as the inability of the couples to achieve pregnancy after 12 months of unprotected intercourse. P-glycoprotein (P-gp) also known as multidrug resistance protein 1 (MDR1) is an important protein of the cell membrane that pumps many foreign substances out of cells and has a protective role in sensitive tissues such as testis. MDR1 gene is located on q21.1 of chromosome 7. Hence, this study aimed to assess the association of MDR1 polymorphism and idiopathic male infertility. Methods: In this study (case- control), DNA was extracted from blood leukocytes of 136 male patients with idiopathic infertility as well as 130 healthy men. Genotypes were determined by using PCR-RFLP technique and EcoO109I enzyme. Results: The genotypes frequencies of CC, CT and TT in patient group were 19.12%, 39.70% and 41.18%, respectively, and the genotype frequencies of CC, CT and TT in control group were 12.30%, 61.54% and 26.16%, respectively. Conclusion: The study findings revealed that a significant association was found between MDR1 polymorphism and idiopathic infertility (P= 0.001). Therefore, the results suggest that CT heterozygous genotype has a protective effect on male fertility (P= 0.01, OR= 0.41; 95%CI: 0.23- 0.84). However, to achieve more accurate results, it is necessary to examine a larger target population.

Background: Antibiotic resistance rates in E. coli are rapidly rising, especially with regard to fluoroquinolones. One of the mechanisms that lead to antibiotic resistance is efflux pumps. The aim of this study was phonotypic and genotypic analysis of efflux pump role in fluoroquinolones resistance of E. coli strains isolated from hospitalized patients in Kermanshah 2013. Materials and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 100 isolates of E. coli were collected from hospitalized patients from Kermanshah. All isolates were identified by standard biochemical tests. The antimicrobial susceptibility patterns were determined by disk diffusion method according to CLSI guidelines. The presence of Efflux pump genes was determined by a PCR method. Results: The rates of resistance to Ceftazidime, Nalidixic Acid, Ciprofloxacin, Norfloxacin, Ofloxacin, Gentamicin, and Tetracycline were 73%, 67%, 55%, 54%, 45%, 38%, and 24%, respectively. According to the results of PCR test, of 100 E. coli isolates, 99% of isolates were positive for acrA, 98% for acrB, 95% for acrE, 98% for acrF, 94% for mdfA, 96% for norE, and 96% for tolC. Conclusion: In Strains with positive gene acrA, acrB, acrA, acrB, tolC, mdfA, norE, the presence of efflux pump inhibitor reduced the amount of resistance to antibiotics. So, efflux pumps are important in antibiotic resistance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]