BACKGROUND: Worldwide surveillance of antimicrobial resistance among urinary tract pathogens is useful to determine important trends and geographical variation for common Gram negative and positive species. We initiated this study to learn the drug resistance pattern and its location (genomic or plasmid-borne) among the strains of Proteus mirabilis, one of the most common causative agents of urinary tract infection (UTI). MATERIAL/METHODS: A total of 200 urine samples were collected from UTI patients, followed by isolation and identification of Proteus milabilis strains. Antibiotic sensitivity and resistance analysis was performed by the disc diffusion method, employing multiple antibiotic discs. The sensitivity was monitored by visualizing the zone of inhibition around the disc. Plasmid isolation was performed by the method of Kado and Liu. Transfer of the R-Plasmid to recipient E.coli C600 cells was achieved using the method of Lederberg and Cohen. RESULTS: Clinical study revealed that this infection is more common in young pregnant women. Various strains of Proteus mirabilis isolated during the course of the study were found to show multiple antibiotic resistance, which was further characterized as plasmid-borne drug resistance. CONCLUSIONS: Proteus mirabilis is one of the important causative agents of urinary tract infection in young women especially during the state of pregnancy. Multiple antibiotic resistance markers of Proteus strains were identified as plasmid mediated.

Keywords: Proteus Infections - diagnosis, Proteus Infections - microbiology, Proteus mirabilis - classification, Proteus mirabilis - drug effects, Proteus mirabilis - isolation & purification, R Factors - genetics, Adolescent, Child, Drug Resistance, Multiple, Bacterial - genetics, Pregnancy, Proteus Infections - microbiology, Proteus mirabilis - isolation & purification, R Factors - genetics, Transformation, Genetic, Urinary Tract Infections - microbiology