Adaptation of Acinetobacter baumannii to colistin exposure: Laboratory mimicking of a clinical case

Adaptation of Acinetobacter baumannii to colistin use on a disease course of a patient was described. Effects of colistin was mimicked in the laboratory conditions. The colistin resistant isolate was identified from the patient after 25 days of colistin treatment. In the laboratory, the expressions of pmrCAB were the highest at the generation which was corresponded to the duration of therapy. A. baumannii can develop a stable colistin-resistant phenotype after three weeks of colistin exposure.