Virulomic Analysis of Multidrug-Resistant <i>Klebsiella pneumoniae</i> Isolates and Experimental Virulence Model Using <i>Danio rerio</i> (Zebrafish)

• Main Authors: Edson Luiz Tarsia Duarte (Author), Camila Fonseca Rizek (Author), Evelyn Sanchez Espinoza (Author), Ana Paula Marchi (Author), Saidy Vasconez Noguera (Author), Marina Farrel Côrtes (Author), Bianca H. Ventura Fernandes (Author), Thais Guimarães (Author), Claudia M. D. de Maio Carrilho (Author), Lauro V. Perdigão Neto (Author), Priscila A. Trindade (Author), Silvia Figueiredo Costa (Author)
• Format: Book
• Published: MDPI AG, 2022-11-01T00:00:00Z.
• Subjects: article
• Online Access: Connect to this object online.
• Notes: 10.3390/antibiotics11111567; 2079-6382
• Keywords: WGS; zebrafish; <i>K. pneumoniae</i>; virulence factor; MDR; MLST; Therapeutics. Pharmacology; RM1-950
• Source: Antibiotics, Vol 11, Iss 11, p 1567 (2022)

This study evaluates a possible correlation between multidrug-resistant <i>Klebsiella pneumoniae</i> strains and virulence markers in a <i>Danio rerio</i> (zebrafish) model. Whole-genome sequencing (WGS) was performed on 46 strains from three Brazilian hospitals. All of the isolates were colistin-resistant and harbored bla_KPC-2. Ten different sequence types (STs) were found; 63% belonged to CC258, 22% to ST340, and 11% to ST16. The virulence factors most frequently found were type 3 fimbriae, siderophores, capsule regulators, and RND efflux-pumps. Six strains were selected for a time-kill experiment in zebrafish embryos: infection by ST16 was associated with a significantly higher mortality rate when compared to non-ST16 strains (52% vs. 29%, <i>p</i> = 0.002). Among the STs, the distribution of virulence factors did not differ significantly except for ST23, which harbored a greater variety of factors than other STs but was not related to a higher mortality rate in zebrafish. Although several virulence factors are described in <i>K. pneumoniae</i>, our study found ST16 to be the only significant predictor of a virulent phenotype in an animal model. Further research is needed to fully understand the correlation between virulence and sequence types.