Co-expression of Extensively drug resistant (XDR) clinical isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa harboring FOX and MOX ampicillinase Gene

This study determines the Co-expression of clinical isolates of XDR Pseudomonas aeruginosa harboring FOX and MOX ampicillinase Gene. A total of five (500) hundred “Clean catch” midstream urine and wound samples collected from patients at a tertiary healthcare institution in Ebonyi State Nigeria were analyzed using standard microbiological techniques. Determination of XDR Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates was by Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion method. Molecular characterization of FOX and MOX ampicillinase resistant genes were done by PCR using specific primers. In total, the Pseudomonas aeruginosa accounted for 22.6 %. XDR Pseudomonas aeruginosa accounted for 17. 8 % and 25.3 % in Wound and urine samples respectively. All the XDR Pseudomonas aeruginosa harbored FOX and MOX ampicillinase resistant Gene. The high frequency of XDR Pseudomonas aeruginosa in our study is very worrisome and could have significant public health impact such as treatment failures, and possibly death, if not properly managed. The solutions to this crisis are to allocate more resources to basic and clinical research and to infection control and antimicrobial stewardship, to develop new antimicrobials, and to optimize the use of those that are currently available. Keywords: XDR, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, FOX, MOX ampicillinase