Plasmid Profiling and Antibiotic Resistance of Extended Spectrum Beta Lactamases Producing Pseudomonas aeruginosa Expressing Amp C Beta-Lactamase Enzyme

This study determined the plasmid profile and antibiotic resistance patterns of extended spectrum beta lactamases producing Pseudomonas aeruginosa expressing Amp C beta lactamase enzyme using standard procedures. Results obtained revealed that 32 (43.2%) had one plasmid, 37(50%) had two plasmids while the remaining five carried three plasmids each. The plasmid sizes ranged from 800bp to 25000-bp while eighteen different profiles were encountered. 10.8% of the strains (8) presented profile 1, 2.7% of the strains (2) presented profile 2, 4, 8 and 17. 16.2% of the strains (12) presented profile 3, 4.05% of the strains (3) presented profile 5, 9, 11, 14, 15 and 18. 6.8% of the strains (5) presented profile 6 and 10. 8.1% of the strains (6) presented profile 7 and 5.4% of the strains (4) presented profile 12, 13 and 16. The treatment of the plasmid positive isolates with acridine orange, SDS and ETBR suggest SDS as the most efficacious curing agents. The antibiotic resistance pattern transferred from three of the five donor strains to the transconjugants were partial and were associated with the transfer of R plasmids of sizes 24, 23, 4, 2, 25kbp. The frequencies of transfer of R plasmids to the transconjugants ranged from 1.4×10 to 1.7×10 per donor strains. 5 7