Abstract:Objective To investigate the antibiotic resistance and virulence of pet-derived Klebsiella pneumoniae in some areas of Guangdong Province.Methods Fecal swabs were collected from dogs and cats for strain isolation, and 16S rRNA and khe genes were amplified by PCR to identify the strains. The sensitivity of K. pneumoniae isolates to 17 antibiotics was determined by the agar diffusion method. PCR was employed to detect resistance genes to β-lactams (blaSHV, blaCTX, and blaTEM), carbapenems (blaKPC and blaNDM), aminoglycosides (rmtB), quinolones (qnrS and oqxAB), sulfonamides (Sul1 and Sul2), amphenicols (floR), tetracyclines (tet(A)), and fosfomycin (fosA3) and some virulence genes (rmpA, maga, fimH, mrkD, uge, WabG, kfu, Aerobactin, and ureA).Results A total of 126 strains of K. pneumoniae were isolated from 428 fecal samples, with an isolation rate of 29.4%. The 126 isolates had high resistance rates to amoxicillin (75.40%), ampicillin (73.81%), and cotrimoxazole (61.90%). They were moderately sensitive to ceftazidime, amikacin, apramycin, and enrofloxacin, and they were sensitive to tigecycline, colistin, and meropenem. The detection rate of the resistance gene oqxAB was the highest, which was 86.51%, followed by those of the β-lactam resistance gene blaSHV (73.81%) and the tetracycline resistance gene tet(A) (52.68%). Other resistance genes were detected to varying degrees (0.79%-46.03%) and the carbapenem resistance gene blaKPC, colistin resistance gene mcr-1, and aminoglycoside resistance gene rmtB were not detected. Among the virulence genes, the urease gene urea, lipopolysaccharide-related gene uge, and fimbria-related gene fimH showed the detection rates of 100.00%, 95.54%, and 91.07%, respectively. Other virulence genes were detected to varying degrees (2.70%-8.90%), while the capsule-related gene magA and the fimbria-related gene mrkD were not detected.Conclusion In some areas of Guangdong Province, the antibiotic resistance of pet-derived K. pneumoniae is serious, but its pathogenicity is relatively weak. Monitoring of its drug resistance and pathogenicity should be strengthened. In addition, antibiotics should be strictly managed and rationally used in the clinical practice, so as to avoid the generation and dissemination of multidrug resistant strains of K. pneumoniae.