Detection of NDM and OXA 48 genes in E. coli and K. pneumoniae isolates from Mulago National Referral Hospital.

Abstract

E. coli and K. pneumoniae are part of the normal flora in the human body. When an individual gets immunocompromised, these organisms can cause human infections as gastrointestinal infections, UTIs, pneumonia and meningitis (Byarugaba & Sewankambo, 2015). These organisms easily obtain and transfer drug resistance genes through plasmids and transposons (Trudic et al., 2017). More recently new resistant strains of E. coli and K. pneumoniae have been identified and reported (Trudic et al., 2017). The purpose of this study was to detect NDM and OXA 48 genes in carbapenem resistant E. coli isolates for Mulago National Referral Hospital. This was a laboratory based cross sectional study where archived E.coli and K. pneumonia isolates were recovered and screened for Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing using a range of antibiotics. The isolates were then screened for NDM and OXA-48 genes by PCR. 40% of the isolates had the OXA-48 gene and none of the isolates had the NDM gene. So OXA-48 gene was detected in the isolates and NDM gene wasn’t found to be present in the isolates. Future researchers should consider using more isolates in the study, they should carry out thorough genotypic and phenotypic characterization of these organisms and they should consider a wider range of healthcare settings.