الفهرس 
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Abstract
S. maltophilia is a multidrug-resistant gram-negative bacillus that is generally considered to be an opportunistic pathogen in hospital and community settings, especially among hospitalized patients.
S. maltophilia infections have been associated with high morbidity and mortality in severely immunocompromised and debilitated individuals.
S. maltophilia is a low-grade pathogen, the pathogenesis of infections involves numerous virulence factors as well as the ability of bacterial cells to form biofilms on abiotic surfaces and host tissues.
Treatment of S. maltophilia infections is difficult, due to the remarkable intrinsic and acquired resistance to many classes of antibiotics, including β-lactams carbapenems, and aminoglycosides.
The most important molecular mechanisms contributing to its resistance to antibiotics include production of two inducible chromosomally encoded β-lactamases, the expression of Qnr genes, and the presence of class 1 integrons, Low outer membrane permeability and efflux pumps.
The fluoroquinolone, tetracycline and trimethoprim-sulphamethaxole (TMP-SMX) were reported as effective antibiotics with good therapeutic outcome. However,
TMP-SMX considered the first choice in treatment of S. maltophilia infections.
The aim of this work was to determine the prevalence of S. maltophilia isolates among the clinical isolates collected during a period of one year, to examine extracellular enzymes profile, biofilm production, the antimicrobial susceptibility, and to investigate the presence of class 1 and 2 integrons by PCR. Also to detect the genetic relatedness of these isolates, in order to understand the distribution of resistant S. maltophilia in hospital settings.