Antimicrobial resistance, biofilm formation, and molecular detection of efflux pump and biofilm genes among clinical isolates from Northern Jordan.

The current study aimed to investigate the antimicrobial susceptibility profiles, biofilm production capabilities, and the prevalence of efflux pump and biofilm-associated genes among clinical isolates. One hundred sixty-seven isolates were collected from microbiology laboratories in Northern Jordan hospitals. Antimicrobial susceptibility was tested using the Kirby-Bauer method. The double-disk synergy test was used to detect the extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL) phenotype. PCR was used to detect the frequency of and efflux pump genes and and biofilm-associated genes among the isolates The highest nonsusceptibility was observed against azithromycin (87.4 %) and nitrofurantoin (85.0 %). Among the isolates, 75.4 % and 92.2 % were multidrug resistant and produced biofilms, respectively. Efflux pump genes , , and were found in 96.4 %, 95.2 %, and 90.4 % of the isolates, respectively Biofilm-associated genes , , and were found in 92.2 %, 89.2 %, and 88.6 % of the isolates, respectively. The presence of the was significantly associated with biofilm formation. Overall, high percentages of multi-drug resistance, efflux pump, and biofilm-associated genes were observed among the isolates. Subsequent studies are recommended to monitor changes in the prevalence of resistance phenotypes and genotypes of isolates.