Do large chromosomally integrated genomic islands contribute to resistance dissemination in Acinetobacter spp? (part 1)

Acinetobacter baumannii and other closely related Acinetobacter spp. are a major cause of nosocomial infections, particularly pneumonia in intensive care patients, leading to prolonged hospital and ICU stays. There is an increasing flood of reports describing diverse antimicrobial resistance patterns among Acinetobacter spp., and an emerging widespread recognition of the marked propensity of Acinetobacter to rapidly develop resistance to multiple major antimicrobial agents. This is a very worrying trait as it reduces the prospect of therapeutic success and ultimately poses the threat of a post-antibiotic era. Despite extensive research into the pivotal role of integron- and transposon-mediated antibiotic resistance in the evolution of Acinetobacter resistance, very little is known about the larger genomic context within which these mobile resistance determinants lie.