TITLE:
Study on Distribution of Acinetobacter baumannii in Human Oral Cavity and Dental Hospital Using Culture Method
AUTHORS:
Akira Fukatsu, Osamu Tsuzukibashi, Takashi Tayama, Tetsuro Kono, Keisuke Idei, Keisuke Usuda, Satoshi Uchibori, Koji Umezawa, Yukiko Iizuka, Takashi Asano, Masanobu Wakami, Taira Kobayashi, Hiroshi Murakami, Masahiko Fukumoto
KEYWORDS:
Acinetobacter baumannii, Selective Medium, Oral Cavity
JOURNAL NAME:
Advances in Microbiology,
Vol.16 No.3,
March
26,
2026
ABSTRACT: Purpose: In recent years, outbreaks of multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii have become a significant concern, making the monitoring of this bacterium an urgent priority. Therefore, there is an urgent need to establish a simple and highly specific method for its isolation and identification. The objective of this study was to develop a selective medium for isolating A. baumannii and to investigate the contamination status of this organism in the human oral cavity and within dental hospitals. Methods: The base medium showing the best growth was supplemented with antibiotics that did not inhibit the growth of this organism, resulting in a selective medium for detecting A. baumannii. Subsequently, we attempted to detect A. baumannii using the developed selective medium for isolation, followed by identification via PCR. Samples included 30 human saliva specimens and swabs taken from the drain traps of 30 dental units used in clinical practice. We also investigated the multidrug resistance tendencies of the isolated A. baumannii strains. Conclusion: Using the isolation method with this selective medium and PCR-based identification, A. baumannii was detected from four dental units, but not from any saliva samples. Furthermore, no multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii was detected at all. This method is presumed to be useful for investigating the distribution of A. baumannii in various samples.