The complete genome and phenome of a community-acquired Acinetobacter baumannii
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Date
2013-03-19Author
Farrugia, Daniel N
Elbourne, Liam DH
Hassan, Karl Adam
Eijkelkamp, Bart A
Tetu, Sasha G
Shah, Bhumika S
Peleg, Anton Y
Mabbutt, Bridget C
Paulsen, Ian T
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Show full item recordAbstract
Many sequenced strains of Acinetobacter baumannii are established nosocomial pathogens capable of resistance to multiple
antimicrobials. Community-acquired A. baumannii in contrast, comprise a minor proportion of all A. baumannii infections
and are highly susceptible to antimicrobial treatment. However, these infections also present acute clinical manifestations
associated with high reported rates of mortality. We report the complete 3.70 Mbp genome of A. baumannii D1279779,
previously isolated from the bacteraemic infection of an Indigenous Australian; this strain represents the first communityacquired
A. baumannii to be sequenced. Comparative analysis of currently published A. baumannii genomes identified
twenty-four accessory gene clusters present in D1279779. These accessory elements were predicted to encode a range of
functions including polysaccharide biosynthesis, type I DNA restriction-modification, and the metabolism of novel
carbonaceous and nitrogenous compounds. Conversely, twenty genomic regions present in previously sequenced A.
baumannii strains were absent in D1279779, including gene clusters involved in the catabolism of 4-hydroxybenzoate and
glucarate, and the A. baumannii antibiotic resistance island, known to bestow resistance to multiple antimicrobials in
nosocomial strains. Phenomic analysis utilising the Biolog Phenotype Microarray system indicated that A. baumannii
D1279779 can utilise a broader range of carbon and nitrogen sources than international clone I and clone II nosocomial
isolates. However, D1279779 was more sensitive to antimicrobial compounds, particularly beta-lactams, tetracyclines and
sulphonamides. The combined genomic and phenomic analyses have provided insight into the features distinguishing A.
baumannii isolated from community-acquired and nosocomial infections.