Emergence of KPC-2-producing Pseudomonas aeruginosa sequence type 463 isolates in Hangzhou, China.

ABSTRACT

Thirty-nine Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase (KPC)-producing Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates, all exhibiting high-level resistance to carbapenems and other ß-lactam antibiotics, were isolated in Hangzhou, China. Molecular epidemiology analysis indicated the presence of two dominant clones, namely, clones A and B, both of which belong to sequence type 463 (ST463). A genetic environment analysis demonstrated that both clones harbor an ISKpn8 transposase, bla(KPC-2), and an ISKpn6-like transposase. These findings depict the features of clonal expansion and transmission of KPC-2-producing P. aeruginosa strains in Hangzhou, China.