SPREAD OF METALLO-beta-LACTAMASES: SCREENING REVEALS THE PRESENCE OF A BLA(SPM-1) GENE IN HOSPITAL SEWAGE IN SOUTHERN BRAZIL

Of 396 Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains isolated from hospital sewage, the bla(SMP-1) gene was confirmed in nine. This is the first report of environmental P. aeruginosa strains carrying the bla(SPM-1) gene in Brazil. The carbapenem resistance, already disseminated among clinical isolates, has been detected among environmental isolates.