ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Microbiol.
Sec. Antimicrobials, Resistance and Chemotherapy
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2025.1672531
This article is part of the Research TopicDefending the Last Line: Combatting Carbapenem-Resistant PathogensView all articles
Molecular Detection of blaVIM and blaNDM in Multidrug-Resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa from Cancer and Burn Patients in Erbil, Iraq
Provisionally accepted
Bahra Kakamin Hamad1*
Muayad Ahmed Mahmud2- 1Medical Laboratory Technology Department, Erbil Health and Medical Technical College, Erbil Polytechnic University, Erbil, Iraq
- 2Medical Laboratory Technology Department, Shaqlawa Technical College, Erbil Polytechnic University, Erbil, Iraq
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Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an opportunistic Gram-negative pathogen and a critical-priority organism according to the World Health Organization. Its increasing resistance to multiple antimicrobial classes, including carbapenems, poses a major challenge in treating infections among immunocompromised individuals, particularly burn and cancer patients. This cross-sectional study investigated phenotypic resistance profiles, carbapenemase classifications using an advanced expert system, and the molecular prevalence of blaVIM and blaNDM genes in 50 clinical isolates from cancer, burn, and other immunocompromised patients in Erbil, Iraq. Multidrug resistance and carbapenem resistance were detected in 66.0% and 58.0% of isolates, respectively, with the highest burden among burn patients (93.8%). Carbapenem resistance was significantly associated with prior carbapenem exposure (p = 0.0044) and increased mortality (p = 0.0392). Carbapenemase-producing isolates classified by the advanced expert system exhibited universal multidrug resistance and more than 95% resistance to imipenem and meropenem. Molecular analysis identified blaVIM in 47.5%, blaNDM in 10.0%, and both genes in 30.0% of tested isolates, with blaNDM significantly associated with carbapenem resistance (p = 0.027). Resistance patterns varied by patient group and antibiotic class, with burn isolates demonstrating the highest rates. These findings highlight the need for enhanced molecular surveillance, infection control, and antimicrobial stewardship in high-risk settings.
Keywords: Pseudomonas aeruginosa, multidrug resistance, Carbapenem resistance, carbapenemase, BlaVIM, BlaNDM, Cancer, burn
Received: 24 Jul 2025; Accepted: 18 Aug 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Hamad and Mahmud. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Bahra Kakamin Hamad, Medical Laboratory Technology Department, Erbil Health and Medical Technical College, Erbil Polytechnic University, Erbil, Iraq
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