Infectious Diseases

Biography

Biography: Eugénie Bergogne-Bérézin

Abstract

Appreciation of the importance of specific pathogens refers to their incidence in clinical infections as well as their pathogenicity, virulence and resistance to most antibiotics, even the most recent powerful drugs.  The importance of Acinetobacter is related in addition to its particular behaviour in terms of versatility, diversity, evolution capabilities, evolving virulence factors. Acinetobacter spp are today considered as among the most dangerous nosocomial pathogens, predominantly isolated in ICUs, medical or surgical, and responsible for severe infections.  Its nosocomial pathogenicity is largely attributed to the multidrug resistance phenotype, responsible for large outbreaks within intensive care units. A combination of resistance elements with intrinsic mechanisms has resulted in development of highly resistant subpopulation which survives to antibiotic challenge. Antibiotic resistance occurs through drug specific mutations and via non drug specific factors like efflux pump expression. A well known system is based upon acquisition of foreign genetic elements history of extension of resistance became well known by acquisition of plasmids, transposons, insertion sequences (high level resistance to specific antibiotics). The pathogenicity of Acinetobacter may vary between the multiple species and among them the occurrence of fulminant Acinetobacter pneumonia has attracted interest of research of virulence factors (ML Joly Guillou, 2005). Compared to other aerobic Gram negative organisms Acinetobacter spp can survive as important opportunistic pathogens, associated to its virulent factors and resistance to most antibiotics. Today after many  years of International interest and annual inter-group meetings exchanging results of important research,  Acinetobacter remains a formidable nosocomial pathogen.