Virulence profile of carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae strains by an in vivo model of Galleria mellonella

Abstract

We demonstrate that the Galleria mellonella model is a useful tool to analyze the virulence of carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae strains. Our findings highlight the pathogenicity of carbapenem-resistant K pneumoniae isolates, particularly the role of the ST661 that, despite being a rare lineage, harbors the blaVIM gene and is associated with high biofilm production and the highest mortality rates.