First description of IncX3 NDM-5-producing plasmid within Escherichia coli ST448 in Mali

Carbapenem resistance in Enterobacteriaceae has become an increasingly worrying threat. So far, no epidemiological data regarding NDM-producing enterobacterial isolates has been available on these strains in West Africa. The aim of this study was to seek for carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae clinical strains isolated in Bamako Teaching Hospital in Mali. Of 50 strains isolated between May 2016 and September 2016, we found a ST448 E. coli harbouring an IncX3 plasmid with bla NDM-5 embedded in the ΔISAba125-ble MBL structure. This study reports the first description of NDM-5 in Mali isolated in an undescribed ST E. coli in West Africa.