Septicemia remains a major cause of death in intensive care units and its treatment is increasingly challenged by multidrug-resistant pathogens.This study investigated bloodstream infections in 89 ICU patients at a tertiary hospital in Sikkim where the Neonatal ICU showed the highest burden.Acinetobacter baumannii was the predominant pathogen, including 13 MDR isolates.One highly resistant isolate, A. baumannii smu was selected for whole-genome sequencing.The smu strain had a genome size of 4.0 Mbp, assembled into three contigs with 182 coverage, an N50 of 3.98 Mb, and a GC content of 39.16%.Nineteen resistance genes were identified including -lactamases (ADC-15B, OXA-98), aminoglycoside-modifying enzymes, and multiple efflux pumps.Virulence factors included acinetobactin-mediated iron uptake, biofilm-associated genes, OmpA, and phospholipases.The genome also harbored mobile genetic elements including insertion sequences and prophages.Pangenome analysis revealed 13 distinct genes associated with stress, tolerance, stability of plasmids, and possible resistance.This study provides a comprehensive genomic characterization of an MDR A. baumannii isolate from Sikkim, revealing its extensive resistance and virulence features, and providing baseline genomic data to support improved antibiotics use and infection control in the region.
Sharma et al. (2026) studied this question.