Outer membrane vesicles transmit bla NDM-5 and package metallo-β-lactamases to promote antibiotic resistance in Escherichia coli

bla NDM-5-positive OMVs promote carbapenem resistance through dual mechanisms involving plasmid-mediated gene transfer and extracellular antibiotic degradation. These findings extend prior work on OMV-associated carbapenemase activity and identify bacterial vesicles as an underappreciated but potentially important contributor to the dissemination and maintenance of carbapenem resistance.