{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,1]],"date-time":"2026-05-01T11:59:42Z","timestamp":1777636782071,"version":"3.51.4"},"reference-count":50,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,29]],"date-time":"2026-04-29T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1777420800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Cell. Infect. Microbiol."],"abstract":"<jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Background<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      The colonization of preterm neonates by multidrug-resistant Enterobacteriaceae, especially in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs), remains poorly understood despite its potential role in healthcare-associated transmission. This study addresses this gap by characterizing gut colonization by Enterobacteriaceae, focusing on carbapenem-resistant\n                      <jats:italic>Klebsiella pneumoniae<\/jats:italic>\n                      in preterm neonates.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      Samples of preterm neonates\u2019 stool were cultured on eosin methylene blue (EMB) agar, followed by biochemical identification, 16S rRNA gene sequencing, and antibiotic susceptibility testing using the VITEK 2 system. All preterm neonates aged 2 weeks or older exhibited colonization by enterobacteria.\n                      <jats:italic>K. pneumoniae<\/jats:italic>\n                      was the most prevalent species, identified in 56.2% (9\/16) of samples, with\n                      <jats:italic>K. quasipneumoniae<\/jats:italic>\n                      present in an additional 6.3% (1\/16). Two\n                      <jats:italic>K. pneumoniae<\/jats:italic>\n                      isolates were multidrug-resistant; one exhibited carbapenem resistance, and one showed intermediate susceptibility. These strains were also resistant to multiple other antibiotics.\n                      <jats:italic>Escherichia coli<\/jats:italic>\n                      was detected in 50% (8\/16) of cases but exhibited no carbapenem resistance.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Conclusions<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      This study demonstrates that preterm neonates in NICUs can harbor multidrug-resistant\n                      <jats:italic>K. pneumoniae<\/jats:italic>\n                      in their gut, highlighting the gut as a potential reservoir and source of CRE (carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae) dissemination. These findings stress the need for enhanced surveillance, strict infection control practices, and strategies to prevent gut colonization and fecal\u2013oral transmission of multidrug-resistant bacteria in vulnerable neonatal populations. All strains of\n                      <jats:italic>K. pneumoniae<\/jats:italic>\n                      , including those resistant or with intermediate resistance to carbapenems, displayed widespread sensitivity to gentamicin (GM) and tigecycline (TGC)\n                      <jats:italic>in vitro<\/jats:italic>\n                      , suggesting potential clinical utility, though further evaluation is warranted.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.3389\/fcimb.2026.1762624","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,29]],"date-time":"2026-04-29T05:54:43Z","timestamp":1777442083000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Colonization of the gut by Klebsiella pneumoniae and its multidrug-resistant strains is well marked in preterm neonates"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"16","author":[{"given":"Eman Mohammed","family":"El-Shanqetti","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biology, College of Science, Taibah University","place":["Madinah, Saudi Arabia"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Hibah M.","family":"Albasri","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biology, College of Science, Taibah University","place":["Madinah, Saudi Arabia"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Moayad S.","family":"Waznah","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biology, College of Science, Taibah University","place":["Madinah, Saudi Arabia"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Fatthy Mohamed","family":"Morsy","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biology, College of Science, Taibah University","place":["Madinah, Saudi Arabia"]},{"name":"Bacteriology Section, Botany and Microbiology Department, Faculty of Science, Assiut University","place":["Assiut, Egypt"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,29]]},"reference":[{"key":"B30","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1687","DOI":"10.1007\/s10096-018-3300-0","article-title":"Extremely and pandrug-resistant bacteria extra-deaths: Myth or reality","volume":"37","author":"Abat","year":"2018","journal-title":"Eur. 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