Lelliottia amnigena recovered from the lung of a harbour porpoise, and comparative analyses with Lelliottia spp.

Abstract

Strain M1325/93/1 (herein referred to by our laboratory identifier, GFKo1) of Lelliottia amnigena was isolated from the lung of a harbour porpoise in 1993. The genome sequence and antimicrobial resistance profile (genomic, phenotypic) of the strain were generated, with the genomic data compared with those from closely related bacteria. We demonstrate that the recently described chromosomally encoded AmpC β-lactamase blaLAQ is a core gene of L. amnigena, and suggest that new variants of this class of lactamase are encoded by other members of the genus Lelliottia. Although presence of blaLAQ is ubiquitous across the currently sequenced members of L. amnigena, we highlight that strain GFKo1 is sensitive to ampicil-lin and cephalosporins. These data suggest that blaLAQ may act as a useful genetic marker for identification of L. amnigena strains, but its presence may not correlate with expected phenotypic resistances. Further studies are required to determine the regulatory mechanisms of blaLAQ in L. amnigena.