Genome sequencing of KPC-producing Gammaproteobacteria

Multi-drug resistant gram negative bacteria (also known as “Superbugs”) are causing infections in vulnerable patients in hospitals around the world. Much of the clinically relevant antibiotic resistance in these bacteria is driven by genes carried on mobile pieces of DNA called plasmids. A particularly significant resistance mechanism called the Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase (KPC) is capable of hydrolyzing all penicillins, cephalosporins and carbapenems leaving very few therapeutic options for patients infected with blaKPC positive Enterobacteriaeceae. Unfortunately, the tools that we use for tracking of hospital transmission of bacteria do not focus on plasmids but rather the genome of the bacterium which has acquired the plasmid. Our project is to explore the blaKPC plasmid transmission across species in a single institution in Virginia where KPC-producing Gammaproteobacteria are endemic over several years using whole genome sequencing to gain insights into plasmid transmission and evolution of genes of drug resistance.