Microbiologia Medica (Jun 2015)

Phenotypic classification of multidrug-resistant Klebsiella through MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry

  • Anna Di Taranto,
  • Rosella De Nittis,
  • Marco Fagioni,
  • Tiziana Rollo,
  • Paola Cella,
  • Raffaele Antonetti

DOI
https://doi.org/10.4081/mm.2015.5015
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 30, no. 1

Abstract

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Background. Resistance to carbapenems in Klebsiella pneumoniae infections could compromise therapy efficiency in hospitals. In Italy, the percentage of K. pmeumoniae resistant to carbapenems blood-isolated is 35%. Materials and Methods. Seventy-three multidrug-resistant K. pneumoniae clinical isolates coming from Foggia (Italy) have been phenotypically classified through matrix assisted laser desorption/ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry between February and May 2014 in order to locate an eventual infectious outbreak. Conclusions. Classification of microbial isolates is essential to this purpose and starts from phenotypic methodologies to the most complex genotypic methods. Among these, mass spectrometry utilization appears to be a simple, useful and quick instrument in a clinical microbiology laboratory.

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