Novel variant (bla(VlM-4)) of the metallo-beta-lactamase gene bla(VIM-1) in a clinical strain of Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Abstract

A Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolate highly resistant to carbapenems was collected from a patient with post-surgical cerebrospinal infection in Greece. The isolate carried a class I integron that contained as a sole cassette the gene bla(VIM-4), a novel variant of bla(VIM-1), with one nucleotide difference resulting in a Ser-to-Arg change at amino acid position 175 of the VIM-1 enzyme. This is the first detection of a VIM-1 variant after its appearance in Italy.