Clinical and Molecular Epidemiology of Extended-Spectrum β-lactamase- Producing Klebsiellapneumoniae?

Infections caused by multidrug-resistant gram-negative bacilli that produce extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL) enzymes have been reported with increasing frequency in intensive-care units and are associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Because of resistance to numerous antimicrobial agents, treatment can be challenging. Isolates of Klebsiella pneumoniae have been producing extended-spectrum β-lactamases, rendering them resistant to many classes of antibiotics such as β-lactam/β-lactamase inhibitor combinations, quinolones, and aminoglycosides. This limits the choice of treatment to carbapenems for the treatment of serious infections. However, there has been an increasing spread of carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae strains (KPC-Kp). This leaves limited therapeutic options against KPC-Kp (tigecycline and colistin). However, they are even starting to find KPC-Kp strains resistant to Collistin, and Tigecycine does not work as well against blood infections. Due to this reason, there is a need for the development of new antimicrobial agents that can fight off the multi-drug resistant strains of Klebsiella pneumoniae.