title: First report on blaNDM-1-producing Acinetobacter baumannii in three clinical isolates from Ethiopia.
abstract: Multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacterial infections are recognized as one of the major threats to global health. In this study, we describe for the first time blaNDM-1gene carrying organisms from Ethiopia consisting of three Acinetobacter baumannii isolates from patients in Jimma.
  
  
  
  Besides phenotypic antimicrobial susceptibility testing, molecular strain typing and sequencing was performed to describe the phylogenetic relation of the Ethiopian isolates in detail in relation to published isolates from all over the globe.
  
  
  
  Three multi-resistant, blaNDM-1-positive Acinetobacter baumannii isolates, most likely a local clonal diffusion, were isolated. Two of the three isolates described within this study were untreatable with the locally available antimicrobials and were only susceptible to polymyxin B and amikacin. The genome sequences confirmed the isolates to be distinct from the outbreak strains reported from Kenya, the only other characterized blaNDM-1positive Acinetobacter baumannii strains in East Africa so far. Up to date, no other bacterial species were found to harbour the gene cassette in Jimma and conjugation to E. coli was not successful under laboratory conditions. However, natural transmission to other bacteria seems likely, given the evident lack of hygienic precautions due to limited resource settings.
  
  
  
  The detected isolates could solely be the tip of the iceberg regarding the presence of NDM-1 producing organisms in the region, as only a limited number of bacterial isolates were evaluated so far and until recently, susceptibility testing and isolation of bacteria could hardly be performed in clinical patient care. These multi-drug resistant organisms pose a serious threat to antimicrobial treatments in Jimma, Ethiopia.
authors.affiliation: Division of Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine, Medical Center of the University of Munich (LMU), Leopoldstr. 5, 80802, Munich, Germany. pritsch@lrz.uni-muenchen.de.|German Center for Infection Research (DZIF), partner site Munich, Munich, Germany. pritsch@lrz.uni-muenchen.de.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pritsch
authors.affiliation: College of Health Sciences, Jimma University, Jimma, Ethiopia.|CIH LMU Center for International Health, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU), Munich, Germany.|Department of Bacteriology, Max von Pettenkofer-Institute (LMU), Munich, Germany.
authors.forename: Ahmed
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zeynudin
authors.affiliation: Department of Bacteriology, Max von Pettenkofer-Institute (LMU), Munich, Germany.
authors.forename: Maxim
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Messerer
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Biology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU), Planegg-Martinsried, Germany.
authors.forename: Simon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Baumer
authors.affiliation: Department of Bacteriology, Max von Pettenkofer-Institute (LMU), Munich, Germany.
authors.forename: Gabriele
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Liegl
authors.affiliation: Department of Bacteriology, Max von Pettenkofer-Institute (LMU), Munich, Germany.
authors.forename: Soeren
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Schubert
authors.affiliation: Division of Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine, Medical Center of the University of Munich (LMU), Leopoldstr. 5, 80802, Munich, Germany.
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Löscher
authors.affiliation: Division of Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine, Medical Center of the University of Munich (LMU), Leopoldstr. 5, 80802, Munich, Germany.|German Center for Infection Research (DZIF), partner site Munich, Munich, Germany.|CIH LMU Center for International Health, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU), Munich, Germany.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hoelscher
authors.affiliation: College of Health Sciences, Jimma University, Jimma, Ethiopia.
authors.forename: Tefara
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Belachew
authors.affiliation: Division of Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine, Medical Center of the University of Munich (LMU), Leopoldstr. 5, 80802, Munich, Germany.|German Center for Infection Research (DZIF), partner site Munich, Munich, Germany.
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rachow
authors.affiliation: Division of Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine, Medical Center of the University of Munich (LMU), Leopoldstr. 5, 80802, Munich, Germany.|German Center for Infection Research (DZIF), partner site Munich, Munich, Germany.|College of Health Sciences, Jimma University, Jimma, Ethiopia.|Department of Bacteriology, Max von Pettenkofer-Institute (LMU), Munich, Germany.
authors.forename: Andreas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Wieser
mesh_terms: D000151:Acinetobacter Infections / Q000382:microbiology; D040981:Acinetobacter baumannii / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D005002:Ethiopia; D006801:Humans; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D058889:Molecular Typing; D010802:Phylogeny; D001618:beta-Lactamases / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D001618:beta-Lactamases; C552864:beta-lactamase NDM-1
keywords: Acinetobacter baumannii; Carbapenemase; East-Africa; Ethiopia; NDM-1; New Delhi metallo-beta-lactamase