Integron-Mediated Antimicrobial Resistance in Gram-Negative Bacteria
Summary
Integrons are genetic platforms that capture, integrate and express arrays of gene cassettes, many of which encode antimicrobial resistance determinants. Predominantly found in Gram-negative bacteria, class 1 integrons have been most extensively implicated in the global dissemination of resistance to β-lactams, aminoglycosides, sulphonamides and other antibiotic classes. These elements comprise an integrase gene (intI), a recombination site (attI) and a promoter that drives expression of inserted cassettes. Through recombination events, integrons accumulate diverse resistance genes and can assemble complex multi-gene assemblies. Often associated with transposons, insertion sequences and conjugative plasmids, integrons serve as hubs that link resistance cassettes to mobile genetic elements, facilitating horizontal gene transfer across species and ecological boundaries. The spread of integron-mediated resistance contributes to the emergence of multidrug-resistant pathogens such as Klebsiella pneumoniae, Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, posing a critical challenge to clinical therapy, infection control and public health worldwide.
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Integron-Mediated Antimicrobial Resistance in Gram-Negative Bacteria publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in integron-mediated antimicrobial resistance in gram-negative bacteria across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Integron: A genetic element with an integrase gene, recombination site and promoter that captures and expresses gene cassettes.
Gene cassette: A mobile genetic module carrying a single open reading frame (often an antibiotic-resistance gene) and a recombination site.
Class 1 integron: The most prevalent integron type in clinical isolates, distinguished by the intI1 integrase and associated conserved sequences.
Mobile genetic element: A DNA segment (e.g., plasmid, transposon, insertion sequence) capable of moving within or between genomes.
β-lactamase: An enzyme that hydrolyses β-lactam antibiotics, including penicillins and cephalosporins.
Carbapenemase: A β-lactamase subclass that inactivates carbapenem antibiotics, often associated with high-risk pathogens.
Conjugative plasmid: A plasmid carrying transfer genes that enable direct cell-to-cell DNA transfer via conjugation.
Multidrug resistance (MDR): Resistance of a bacterial strain to three or more antimicrobial classes.
References
- Class 1 integrons and multiple mobile genetic elements in clinical isolates of the Klebsiella pneumoniae complex from a tertiary hospital in eastern China. Frontiers in Microbiology (2023).
- Integrons are key players in the spread of beta-lactamase-encoding genes. International Journal of Antimicrobial Agents (2024).
- New structures simultaneously harboring class 1 integron and ISCR1-linked resistance genes in multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria. BMC Microbiology (2016).
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