Carbapenemases increasingly have been reported in Enterobacteriaceae in the past 10 years. Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemases have been reported in the United States and then worldwide, with a marked endemicity at least in the United States and Greece. Metallo-enzymes (Verona integron-encoded metallo-β-lactamase, IMP) also have been reported worldwide, with a higher prevalence in southern Eur...

Carbapenems (imipenem, meropenem, biapenem, ertapenem, and doripenem) are β-lactam antimicrobial agents. Because carbapenems have the broadest spectra among all β-lactams and are primarily used to treat infections by multi-resistant Gram-negative bacteria, the emergence and spread of carbapenemases became a major public health concern. Carbapenemases are the most versatile family of β-lactamase...

Accurate detection of carbapenemase-producing Gram-negative bacilli is of utmost importance for the control of nosocomial spread and the initiation of appropriate antimicrobial therapy. The modified Hodge test (MHT), a carbapenem inactivation assay, has shown poor sensitivity in detecting the worldwide spread of New Delhi metallo-β-lactamase (NDM). Recent studies demonstrated that NDM is a lipo...

Carbapenemases are a large and diverse family of microbial enzymes that hydrolyze not only carbapenems but also other b-lactams, with the occasional exception of monobactams, such as aztreonam. For clinicians, the nomenclature of carbapenemases, like that of other b-lactamases, is confusing. In keeping with other b-lactamases, carbapenemases can be classified on the basis of function or structu...

The spread of carbapenemases in Enterobacteriaceae is among the most important issues in the antimicrobial resistance. The rapid and recent diffusion of class A and B carbapenemases determined the need of specific diagnostic tests able to detect with high sensitivity this type of resistance and to discriminate between the different enzymes. The aim of this study was to test two carbapenemase de...

Bacterial resistance to antibiotics has become a major source of concern for public health. Enterobacteriaceae are among the most common human pathogens, causing community-acquired as well as hospital-acquired infections. Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae have been increasingly reported worldwide since their first identification more than 20 years ago. Three main classes of carbapenemases...

Abstract We report the clonal spread and evolution of high-risk Pseudomonas aeruginosa sequence type 463 co-producing KPC-2 AFM-1 carbapenemases isolated from hospital patients in China during 2020–2022. Those strains pose a substantial public health threat surveillance stricter infection-control measures are essential to prevent further infections.