Relationship between type III secretion toxins, biofilm formation, and antibiotic resistance in clinical <i>Pseudomonas aeruginosa</i> isolates

Abstract

Background and aim. Pseudomonas aeruginosa is considered as a notorious pathogen due to its multidrug resistance and life threatening infections. We investigated the relationship between type III secretion toxins, biofilm formation, and antibiotic resistance among clinical P. aeruginosa isolates. Methods. A total of 70 genetically distinct clinical P. aeruginosa isolates were characterized for antibiotic resistance by disk diffusion assay. Biofilm formation was evaluated by microtiter plate method and presence of four exo genes (exoS, exoU, exoT and exoY) was investigated by PCR. A p-value < 0.05 was regarded statistically significant. Results. The most effective antibiotics were Meropenem and Piperacillin. Multidrug resistance was more prevalent in the ciprofloxacin-resistant isolates than in the susceptible isolates. The most frequently identified exo was exoS (37.1%). Genotype exoS/exoT was found in 4 isolates, while genotype exoU/exoT was not found. Prevalence of exoS was generally higher in the susceptible isolates than in the resistant isolates. A significant association was found between the formation of strong biofilm and resistance to antibiotics (p < 0.05). Prevalence of exoY and exoU was higher in the non-strong biofilm producers compared to the strong biofilm producers. Conclusion. Our study revealed formation of strong biofilm along with antibiotic resistance and the presence of exo genes in P. aeruginosa isolates. Knowledge of virulence gene profiles and biofilm formation may be useful in deciding appropriate treatment.

Keywords

• pseudomonas aeruginosa
• biofilm
• type iii secretion system
• drug resistance
• virulence
• exoenzyme