On Dec. 1, the pathogenic microorganism research team of WCH, led by Professor Zong Zhiyong from Center of Infectious Disease and Center for Pathogen Research, published an expert review online in Clinical Microbiology Reviews (IF: 26.132), a top academic journal in the field of microbiology and infectious diseases, titled “Klebsiella Oxytoca Complex: Update on Taxonomy, Antimicrobial Resistance, and Virulence”.
The article was jointly completed by Professor Zong Zhiyong’s team and his international partner Professor Alan McNally (the University of Birmingham, UK), with WCH as the institute of the first corresponding author.
This paper provides detailed review on the fundamentals and progress of taxonomy, species identification, antimicrobial resistance mechanism, virulence, clinical infection types, treatment, healthcare-associated infection outbreak, prevention and control of Klebsiella oxytoca complex, an important pathogen. Previously, K. oxytoca complex was not well known for many clinicians because of the covering up of its “close relative”-Klebsiella pneumoniae. This review is helpful to enhance clinicians’ understanding of the complex, and to raise awareness to curb a tragedy like K. pneumoniae to the human beings.
Professor Zong Zhiyong’s team has been focusing on the research of bacterial infection and antimicrobial resistance for a long time. In 2018, his team discovered and named a new species, Klebsiella huaxiensis. Subsequently, his team have been discovered and named many new bacterial species and also reported a couple of new antimicrobial resistance genes (such as mcr-10 mediating colistin resistance). These findings formed systematic academic achievements in bacterial infection and antimicrobial resistance.
Clinical Microbiology Reviews is a journal under the American Society for Microbiology, which only publishes authoritative reviews on clinical microbiology and infectious diseases; all of the authors are experts with international influence in this field. Because of its authority, strictness and professionalism, the journal always enjoys high reputation in the field of microbiology and infection.
