The formation of intracellular bacterial communities (IBC) has been proposed as a new pathogenic model for urinary tract infections. Scarce reports describe this phenomenon in humans. We describe the presence of IBC in uroepithelial cells of a child with recurrent urinary infections. Urine specimen was collected from a child with Escherichia coli UTI and analyzed by light and confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM). The capability of this strain to produce intracellular infection in bladder tissue was confirmed in mice models. Escherichia coli phylogenetic group, presence of virulence factors genes, and its multiple locus sequence type were determined. CLSM showed large collections of morphologically coccoid and rod bacteria in eukaryotic cells cytoplasm, even seemingly protruding from the cells. Escherichia coli EC7U, ST3626, harbored type 1, P, and S/F1C fimbriae and K1 capsule genes. In this report, we confirm the presence of IBC in children with UTI, as it has been described before in women.
Introduction: To characterize extended-spectrum β-lactamases (ESBLs) and plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance (PMQR) genes in Escherichia coli isolates obtained from extra-intestinal samples in three Uruguayan hospitals. Methodology: Fifty-five ESBL-producing E. coli isolates were studied. Virulence genes, ESBLs, and PMQR genes were detected by polymerase chain reaction. ESBL-producing isolates were compared by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis. Multi-locus sequence typing was also performed on 13 selected isolates. Results: Thirty-seven isolates harbored bla CTX-M-15 (67.3%), eight bla CTX-M-2 (14.6%), five bla CTX-M-14 (9.1%), three carried both bla CTX-M-2 and bla CTX-M-14 , one bla CTX-M-9 , and one bla CTX-M-8 . Among the CTX-M-15 producers, 92% belonged to sequence types ST131 and ST405, and carried aac(6')Ib-cr as well. Isolates harboring bla CTX-M-2 , bla CTX-M-14 , bla CTX-M-9 , or bla CTX-M-8 were found to be genetically unrelated. Conclusions: The successful dissemination of CTX-M-15-producing E.coli isolates seems to be linked to the spreading of high-risk clones and horizontal gene transfer. A trade-off between carrying more antibiotic resistance and less virulence-related genes could partially account for the evolutionary advantages featured by successful clones.
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