OXA-900, a Novel OXA Sub-Family Carbapenemase Identified in Citrobacter freundii, Evades Detection by Commercial Molecular Diagnostics Tests

Sammy Frenk; Nadya Rakovitsky; Hadas Kon; Reut Rov; Shirin Abramov; Mor Nadia Lurie-Weinberger; David Schwartz; Erica Pinco; Jonathan Lellouche; Yehuda Carmeli

doi:10.3390/microorganisms9091898

OXA-900, a Novel OXA Sub-Family Carbapenemase Identified in Citrobacter freundii, Evades Detection by Commercial Molecular Diagnostics Tests

Microorganisms. 2021 Sep 7;9(9):1898. doi: 10.3390/microorganisms9091898.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ National Institute for Antibiotic Resistance and Infection Control, Ministry of Health, Tel Aviv 6423906, Israel.
² Shmuel Harofeh Geriatric Medical Center, Be'er Ya'akov 70350, Israel.
³ The Miriam and Sheldon Adelson School of Medicine, Ariel University, Ariel 40700, Israel.
⁴ Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 6997801, Israel.

Abstract

Using whole-genome sequencing and cloning of the target gene, we identified bla_OXA-900 carbapenemase, a novel bla_OXA belonging to a distant and distinct sub-family of bla_OXA-48-like. The plasmid-mediated gene was identified in a C. freundii isolate with elevated carbapenem MICs that evaded detection by commercial DNA-based methods. The novel gene, an OXA-48 family carbapenem-hydrolyzing class D β-lactamase, OXA-900, likely originates from marine environmental Shewanella. Since this plasmid-mediated gene has entered a member of the Enterobacterales and evades detection by commonly used tests, it may gain wide dissemination among Enterobacterales.

Keywords: Enterobacterales; blaOXA-48-like; carbapenemase; β-lactamase.