Molecular epidemiology of a carbapenem-resistant Serratia marcescens outbreak during the COVID-19 pandemic
IntroductionSerratia marcescens is a significant causative agent of hospital-acquired infections (HAIs), particularly in intensive care units (ICUs). Carbapenem resistance represents a major concern in HAI management, as carbapenem-resistant bacteria can trigger outbreaks in hospital settings. While...
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2025-07-01
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| author | Letícia Fernandes da Rocha Grazielle Motta Rodrigues Gabriela Simões de Oliveira Gabriela Simões de Oliveira Aymê Duarte Echevarria Priscila Wink Fabiana Volpato Mayana Berdichevski Mayana Berdichevski Larissa Lutz Dariane Castro Pereira Dariane Castro Pereira Afonso Luís Barth Afonso Luís Barth Afonso Luís Barth Andreza Francisco Martins Andreza Francisco Martins Andreza Francisco Martins Andreza Francisco Martins Andreza Francisco Martins |
| author_facet | Letícia Fernandes da Rocha Grazielle Motta Rodrigues Gabriela Simões de Oliveira Gabriela Simões de Oliveira Aymê Duarte Echevarria Priscila Wink Fabiana Volpato Mayana Berdichevski Mayana Berdichevski Larissa Lutz Dariane Castro Pereira Dariane Castro Pereira Afonso Luís Barth Afonso Luís Barth Afonso Luís Barth Andreza Francisco Martins Andreza Francisco Martins Andreza Francisco Martins Andreza Francisco Martins Andreza Francisco Martins |
| author_sort | Letícia Fernandes da Rocha |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | IntroductionSerratia marcescens is a significant causative agent of hospital-acquired infections (HAIs), particularly in intensive care units (ICUs). Carbapenem resistance represents a major concern in HAI management, as carbapenem-resistant bacteria can trigger outbreaks in hospital settings. While molecular evaluation of outbreaks typically relies on pulse field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) or core genome multilocus sequence typing (cgMLST) methods, alternative rapid, reliable, and cost-effective methods for assessing clonal relatedness are needed.MethodsThis study aimed to characterize a carbapenem-resistant S. marcescens outbreak that occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic in a tertiary care hospital, using the flagellin gene as a single-locus sequence typing (SLST) method. In addition, we evaluated the genetic context of carbapenemase genes through whole-genome sequencing (WGS).ResultsAmong the 170 carbapenem-resistant Serratia marcescens isolates recovered, high resistance to gentamicin, ciprofloxacin, and cefepime was observed. The predominant carbapenemase gene detected by qPCR-HRM was blaKPC (92.2%). Phylogenetic analysis of the flagellin gene grouped the sequences into two distinct clades, with all outbreak-related blaKPC-positive S. marcescens isolates clustering within clade B. The blaKPC gene was carried on an IncP6 plasmid.DiscussionOur findings indicate that the flagellin gene serves as an effective marker for characterizing carbapenem-resistant S. marcescens carrying blaKPC, confirming that the outbreak was caused by the clonal expansion of isolates harboring blaKPC on an IncP6 plasmid. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-91b9c5e30582475bbc5072d8acb5ba2e |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 1664-302X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
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| spelling | doaj-art-91b9c5e30582475bbc5072d8acb5ba2e2025-08-20T02:37:38ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Microbiology1664-302X2025-07-011610.3389/fmicb.2025.15255431525543Molecular epidemiology of a carbapenem-resistant Serratia marcescens outbreak during the COVID-19 pandemicLetícia Fernandes da Rocha0Grazielle Motta Rodrigues1Gabriela Simões de Oliveira2Gabriela Simões de Oliveira3Aymê Duarte Echevarria4Priscila Wink5Fabiana Volpato6Mayana Berdichevski7Mayana Berdichevski8Larissa Lutz9Dariane Castro Pereira10Dariane Castro Pereira11Afonso Luís Barth12Afonso Luís Barth13Afonso Luís Barth14Andreza Francisco Martins15Andreza Francisco Martins16Andreza Francisco Martins17Andreza Francisco Martins18Andreza Francisco Martins19Unidade de Microbiologia e Biologia Molecular, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, BrazilPPGCM - Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Médicas, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, BrazilPPGCF - Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Farmacêuticas, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, BrazilDepartamento de Microbiologia, Imunologia e Parasitologia, Instituto de Ciências Básicas, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, BrazilLABRESIS - Laboratório de Pesquisa em Resistência Bacteriana, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, BrazilLABRESIS - Laboratório de Pesquisa em Resistência Bacteriana, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, BrazilLABRESIS - Laboratório de Pesquisa em Resistência Bacteriana, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, BrazilPPGCF - Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Farmacêuticas, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, BrazilLABRESIS - Laboratório de Pesquisa em Resistência Bacteriana, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, BrazilUnidade de Microbiologia e Biologia Molecular, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, BrazilUnidade de Microbiologia e Biologia Molecular, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, BrazilLABRESIS - Laboratório de Pesquisa em Resistência Bacteriana, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, BrazilPPGCM - Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Médicas, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, BrazilPPGCF - Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Farmacêuticas, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, BrazilLABRESIS - Laboratório de Pesquisa em Resistência Bacteriana, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, BrazilPPGCM - Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Médicas, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, BrazilPPGCF - Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Farmacêuticas, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, BrazilDepartamento de Microbiologia, Imunologia e Parasitologia, Instituto de Ciências Básicas, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, BrazilLABRESIS - Laboratório de Pesquisa em Resistência Bacteriana, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, BrazilDepartamento de Microbiologia, Imunologia e Parasitologia, Instituto de Ciências Básicas, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, BrazilIntroductionSerratia marcescens is a significant causative agent of hospital-acquired infections (HAIs), particularly in intensive care units (ICUs). Carbapenem resistance represents a major concern in HAI management, as carbapenem-resistant bacteria can trigger outbreaks in hospital settings. While molecular evaluation of outbreaks typically relies on pulse field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) or core genome multilocus sequence typing (cgMLST) methods, alternative rapid, reliable, and cost-effective methods for assessing clonal relatedness are needed.MethodsThis study aimed to characterize a carbapenem-resistant S. marcescens outbreak that occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic in a tertiary care hospital, using the flagellin gene as a single-locus sequence typing (SLST) method. In addition, we evaluated the genetic context of carbapenemase genes through whole-genome sequencing (WGS).ResultsAmong the 170 carbapenem-resistant Serratia marcescens isolates recovered, high resistance to gentamicin, ciprofloxacin, and cefepime was observed. The predominant carbapenemase gene detected by qPCR-HRM was blaKPC (92.2%). Phylogenetic analysis of the flagellin gene grouped the sequences into two distinct clades, with all outbreak-related blaKPC-positive S. marcescens isolates clustering within clade B. The blaKPC gene was carried on an IncP6 plasmid.DiscussionOur findings indicate that the flagellin gene serves as an effective marker for characterizing carbapenem-resistant S. marcescens carrying blaKPC, confirming that the outbreak was caused by the clonal expansion of isolates harboring blaKPC on an IncP6 plasmid.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2025.1525543/fullSerratia marcescensblaKPCsingle-locus sequence typingIncP6 plasmidfliC |
| spellingShingle | Letícia Fernandes da Rocha Grazielle Motta Rodrigues Gabriela Simões de Oliveira Gabriela Simões de Oliveira Aymê Duarte Echevarria Priscila Wink Fabiana Volpato Mayana Berdichevski Mayana Berdichevski Larissa Lutz Dariane Castro Pereira Dariane Castro Pereira Afonso Luís Barth Afonso Luís Barth Afonso Luís Barth Andreza Francisco Martins Andreza Francisco Martins Andreza Francisco Martins Andreza Francisco Martins Andreza Francisco Martins Molecular epidemiology of a carbapenem-resistant Serratia marcescens outbreak during the COVID-19 pandemic Frontiers in Microbiology Serratia marcescens blaKPC single-locus sequence typing IncP6 plasmid fliC |
| title | Molecular epidemiology of a carbapenem-resistant Serratia marcescens outbreak during the COVID-19 pandemic |
| title_full | Molecular epidemiology of a carbapenem-resistant Serratia marcescens outbreak during the COVID-19 pandemic |
| title_fullStr | Molecular epidemiology of a carbapenem-resistant Serratia marcescens outbreak during the COVID-19 pandemic |
| title_full_unstemmed | Molecular epidemiology of a carbapenem-resistant Serratia marcescens outbreak during the COVID-19 pandemic |
| title_short | Molecular epidemiology of a carbapenem-resistant Serratia marcescens outbreak during the COVID-19 pandemic |
| title_sort | molecular epidemiology of a carbapenem resistant serratia marcescens outbreak during the covid 19 pandemic |
| topic | Serratia marcescens blaKPC single-locus sequence typing IncP6 plasmid fliC |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2025.1525543/full |
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