The road less travelled: exploring the genomic characteristics and antimicrobial resistance potential of Acinetobacter baumannii from the indigenous Orang Asli community in Peninsular Malaysia
The road less travelled: exploring the genomic characteristics and antimicrobial resistance potential of Acinetobacter baumannii from the indigenous Orang Asli community in Peninsular Malaysia
Acinetobacter baumannii is widely recognized as a multidrug-resistant pathogen, but with most public genome datasets biased toward hospital-derived isolates. Little is known about A. baumannii isolates from healthy individuals from the community. This study analysed genome sequences from nine A. baumannii isolates obtained from the upper respiratory tract of the indigenous Orang Asli in their rural community in Peninsular Malaysia. Genomic analysis revealed genetic diversity, including three new Pasteur sequence types (STs) and six novel Oxford STs. One isolate, A. baumannii 19064, belonged to Global Clone 8 (GC8), a lineage linked to clinical infections. Core genome phylogeny showed these community isolates interspersed with clinical isolates from a nearby hospital, indicating potential pathogenicity under suitable conditions. All isolates carried intrinsic blaOXA-51-like carbapenemase and blaADC cephalosporinase genes but remained susceptible to meropenem. Two isolates, A. baumannii 19053 and 19062, were tetracycline-resistant but minocycline-susceptible, and harboured the tet(39)-tetR gene pair within a mobile pdif module on distinct Rep_3-type plasmids. Only one isolate, A. baumannii 19055, is plasmid-free; the rest mainly harboured cryptic plasmids, often containing identifiable pdif modules. These findings highlight the clinical relevance of A. baumannii strains residing in healthy individuals, particularly in isolated communities that are seldom accessible to public health. Despite their remote origins, these isolates possess virulence factors and resistance genes similar to those in hospital settings. This underscores the importance of genomic surveillance of commensal pathogens, and taking this road which is less travelled can offer insights into broader epidemiological trends and guide future public health strategies.
Lean, Soo-Sum
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Morris, Denise E.
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Anderson, Rebecca
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Alattraqchi, Ahmed Ghazi
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Cleary, David W.
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Clarke, Stuart C.
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Yeo, Chew Chieng
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Lean, Soo-Sum
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Morris, Denise E.
189ce741-b3af-4838-b816-a748d517ea64
Anderson, Rebecca
3b1eb108-4d0d-4fd6-a1a6-50f2cc03a533
Alattraqchi, Ahmed Ghazi
dade11e6-1d45-4351-96a5-ed751091e200
Cleary, David W.
86f0cb8a-c522-4d5d-96d7-cfef47d97a3a
Clarke, Stuart C.
f7d7f7a2-4b1f-4b36-883a-0f967e73fb17
Yeo, Chew Chieng
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Lean, Soo-Sum, Morris, Denise E., Anderson, Rebecca, Alattraqchi, Ahmed Ghazi, Cleary, David W., Clarke, Stuart C. and Yeo, Chew Chieng
(2025)
The road less travelled: exploring the genomic characteristics and antimicrobial resistance potential of Acinetobacter baumannii from the indigenous Orang Asli community in Peninsular Malaysia.
MicrobiologyOpen.
(Submitted)
Abstract
Acinetobacter baumannii is widely recognized as a multidrug-resistant pathogen, but with most public genome datasets biased toward hospital-derived isolates. Little is known about A. baumannii isolates from healthy individuals from the community. This study analysed genome sequences from nine A. baumannii isolates obtained from the upper respiratory tract of the indigenous Orang Asli in their rural community in Peninsular Malaysia. Genomic analysis revealed genetic diversity, including three new Pasteur sequence types (STs) and six novel Oxford STs. One isolate, A. baumannii 19064, belonged to Global Clone 8 (GC8), a lineage linked to clinical infections. Core genome phylogeny showed these community isolates interspersed with clinical isolates from a nearby hospital, indicating potential pathogenicity under suitable conditions. All isolates carried intrinsic blaOXA-51-like carbapenemase and blaADC cephalosporinase genes but remained susceptible to meropenem. Two isolates, A. baumannii 19053 and 19062, were tetracycline-resistant but minocycline-susceptible, and harboured the tet(39)-tetR gene pair within a mobile pdif module on distinct Rep_3-type plasmids. Only one isolate, A. baumannii 19055, is plasmid-free; the rest mainly harboured cryptic plasmids, often containing identifiable pdif modules. These findings highlight the clinical relevance of A. baumannii strains residing in healthy individuals, particularly in isolated communities that are seldom accessible to public health. Despite their remote origins, these isolates possess virulence factors and resistance genes similar to those in hospital settings. This underscores the importance of genomic surveillance of commensal pathogens, and taking this road which is less travelled can offer insights into broader epidemiological trends and guide future public health strategies.
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Submitted date: 15 June 2025
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 503316
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/503316
ISSN: 2045-8827
PURE UUID: 434d0c82-caf0-4e24-b0a8-758dc675c3ff
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Date deposited: 29 Jul 2025 16:37
Last modified: 14 Oct 2025 01:42
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Contributors
Author:
Soo-Sum Lean
Author:
Denise E. Morris
Author:
Rebecca Anderson
Author:
Ahmed Ghazi Alattraqchi
Author:
David W. Cleary
Author:
Chew Chieng Yeo
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