Genome sequencing of multidrug-resistant uropathogenic Escherichia coli isolates from Mexican pregnant women

Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are one of the most common bacterial infections worldwide, which encompass a wide variety of clinical features and represent a major public health problem, with a high incidence during pregnancy. Uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC) is the most common causative agent of UTIs and its pathogenic mechanism involves a plethora of virulence factors that enable its capacity to adapt to new niches and cause disease in the host. The misuse of prescribed antibiotic drugs without support from antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST) contributes to the widely antimicrobial resistance (AMR) problem in UPEC infections. Moreover, the dissemination and acquisition of antimicrobial resistance determinants by UPEC isolates lead to the emergence of multidrug-resistant (MDR) strains, which complicate the effectiveness of UTI treatment. This project elucidates, from a genomic perspective, the presence of antimicrobial resistance genes (ARGs) and the relevance of virulence factors of UPEC strains in Mexican pregnant women.