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Specific type IV pili groups in clinical isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa

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Abstract

The relationships between specific type IV pili (TFP) groups and antibiotic resistance, biofilm formation, and bacterial motility were determined in 190 Pseudomonas aeruginosa clinical isolates. While motility and biofilm formation were determined by phenotypic assays, the presence of TFP was determined by PCR assay and antibiotic susceptibility by disk diffusion. The results showed a high ability to form biofilm (97.4%), multidrug resistance (44.7%), and the presence of a high number of motile isolates. We also found an association between strong biofilm production and multidrug resistance. Furthermore, TFP group III was associated with strong biofilm production. In contrast, the isolates with TFP group II and those without any TFP were associated with non-strong biofilm production. Regarding motility, TFP group II was associated with higher percentages of swarming, swimming, and twitching, while TFP group I showed lower percentages of swarming and twitching, and TFP group III showed lower levels of swarming and swimming. In conclusion, these findings highlight the differences in P. aeruginosa phenotypes related to the presence of specific TFP groups and their potential implications in clinical settings.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Donna Pringle for idiomatic correction.

Funding

This work was supported by internal funds of the Barcelona Institute for Global Health, ISGlobal, and Fondo de Apoyo – Facultad de Medicina – Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia (SIDISI 60130). GH has a personal fellowship from the Schlumberger Foundation - Faculty for The Future Program. JR was supported by a fellowship from the I3SNS program (2012–2016) of the ISCIII (grant number: CES11/012) ISGlobal is a member of the CERCA Programme, Generalitat de Catalunya.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Barcelona Institute for Global Health, ISGlobal, Hospital Clínic - Universitat de Barcelona, building CEK, C/Rosselló 149-153, 08036, Barcelona, Spain

    Gertrudis Horna, Noraida Mosqueda, Mercedes Rubio & Joaquim Ruiz

  2. Instituto de Medicina Tropical Alexander von Humboldt, Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia, Lima, Peru

    Gertrudis Horna, Karina Quezada, Susan Ramos & Humberto Guerra

Authors
  1. Gertrudis Horna
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  2. Karina Quezada
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  3. Susan Ramos
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  4. Noraida Mosqueda
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  5. Mercedes Rubio
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  6. Humberto Guerra
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  7. Joaquim Ruiz
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Correspondence to Gertrudis Horna or Joaquim Ruiz.

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethical statement

The study was approved by the Ethical Committee of the Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia (Lima, Peru) and by the Ethical Committee of Hospital Clinic (Barcelona, Spain).

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Horna, G., Quezada, K., Ramos, S. et al. Specific type IV pili groups in clinical isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Int Microbiol 22, 131–141 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10123-018-00035-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10123-018-00035-3

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