Acinetobacter is a common bacterium that is widespread in nature and has the ability to survive in both dry and moist environments. It becomes a source of infection in hospital environment when it colonizes medical equipment, human skin and sometimes food. In particular, Acinetobacter baumannii is becoming a major problem in hospital-acquired infections because it is often multi-drug resistant. This contributes to the increase in morbidity and mortality. In addition to assessing the resistance potential of Acinetobacter spp., characterizing the diversity of strains shared by human, animal and environmental compartments would be key to identifying resistance transmission dynamics.
This work will provide the first data on Acinetobacter mapping in 3 French regions. Firstly, the consortium will sample natural and hospital areas to detect and sequence Acinetobacter spp. strains present in humans and the environment. Sequencing will enable researchers to perform comparative analyses to identify and annotate Acinetobacter spp’s antimicrobial resistance genes and virulence factors. This work will give access to a comparative approach to Acinetobacter spp strains, enabling an integrated understanding of the phylogeny of these bacteria, and hence their dynamics of acquisition of antibiotic resistance genes, especially in the hospital environment.
