Vol. 12, Special Issue 7 (2023)

Author(s):
Dr. Harish Kalla and Dr. Mythri Paila

Abstract:
The present study was undertaken to isolate the Klebsiella pneumoniae from water samples collected from different farms and nearby water bodies of Tirupati. Out of 112 water samples collected from different sources, 16 (14.3%) isolates from water samples were positive for Klebsiella pneumoniae by cultural isolation and conducting biochemical tests. The study found that all the 16 isolates were found positive for K. pneumoniae by PCR targeting for rpoB gene, which encodes for RNA polymerase B. Biofilm producing ability of K. pneumoniae was detected by Congo red agar method. In this study, out of 16 water isolates, five (31.2%) isolates were found as biofilm producers. Among 16 K. pneumoniae isolates from water samples, maximum resistance was observed for azithromycin (100%), ampicillin (87.5%), followed by cefazolin (56.3%), amoxyclav (37.5%), cefotaxime (12.5%) and tetracycline (6.3%). This study shows that water sources were contaminated with K. pneumoniae and anti-microbial resistance is a serious public health concern. In this study almost all samples were resistant to azithromycin and ampicillin which may implies to treatment failures in community acquired pneumoniae caused by K. pneumoniae.