Comparative De Novo and Pan-Genome Analysis of MDR Nosocomial Bacteria Isolated from Hospitals in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacteria are one of the most serious threats to public health, and one of the most important types of MDR bacteria are those that are acquired in a hospital, known as nosocomial. This study aimed to isolate and identify MDR bacteria from selected hospitals in Jeddah and analyze their antibiotic-resistant genes. Bacteria were collected from different sources and wards of hospitals in Jeddah City. Phoenix BD was used to identify the strains and perform susceptibility testing. Identification of selected isolates showing MDR to more than three classes on antibiotics was based on 16S rRNA gene and whole genome sequencing. Genes conferring resistance were characterized using de novo and pan-genome analyses. In total, we isolated 108 bacterial strains, of which 75 (69.44%) were found to be MDR. Taxonomic identification revealed that 24 (32%) isolates were identified as Escherichia coli, 19 (25.3%) corresponded to Klebsiella pneumoniae, and 17 (22.67%) were methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). Among the Gram-negative bacteria, K. pneumoniae isolates showed the highest resistance levels to most antibiotics. Of the Gram-positive bacteria, S. aureus (MRSA) strains were noticed to exhibit the uppermost degree of resistance to the tested antibiotics, which is higher than that observed for K. pneumoniae isolates. Taken together, our results illustrated that MDR Gram-negative bacteria are the most common cause of nosocomial infections, while MDR Gram-positive bacteria are characterized by a wider antibiotic resistance spectrum. Whole genome sequencing found the appearance of antibiotic resistance genes, including SHV, OXA, CTX-M, TEM-1, NDM-1, VIM-1, ere(A), ermA, ermB, ermC, msrA, qacA, qacB, and qacC.