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Wound microbiota composition varies by type of wound sustained, though with commonalities across wounds, according to an analysis of 100 wound soft tissue samples presented by Ukrainian researchers at ASM Microbe 2025, in Los Angeles. This research suggests that microbiome profiling can guide antibiotic selection, ideally hastening healing of slow-healing wounds.
The tissue samples were taken from Ukrainians who had experienced limb injuries during the country’s war with Russia.
“The inclusion criteria for this study was wounds that did not heal quickly,” with no signs of epithelization three weeks after sustaining the wound, said ASM Microbe presenter Kateryna V. Ksenchyna, a PhD candidate in microbiology at National Pirogov Memorial Medical University, in Vinnytsia, Ukraine. Ksenchyna spoke virtually from Ukraine during the meeting, in a session that highlighted ongoing microbiology work in the country during difficult wartime conditions.
Of the 100 wounds, 14 were from burns, 22 from mine-blast injuries, and 64 from gunshots. Ksenchyna and colleagues analyzed the proportion of gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria in each type of wound. To gather wound samples, researchers collected biopsies if a wound was deep enough or took swabs of shallower wounds.
There were 145 isolates of gram-negative or gram-positive bacteria across all wound types, including 19 from burn wounds. The isolates for burns were roughly equal between gram-negative (11/19; 58%) and gram-positive bacteria (8/19; 42%).
The mine-blast and gunshot wound isolates were mostly colonized by gram-negative bacteria, particularly Acinetobacter baumannii and Klebsiella pneumoniae. These were the most common pathogens across all injuries, along with Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. There were negligible amounts of Streptococcus spp., S. haemolyticus, and S. epidermidis in any wound type.
The single most prevalent pathogen, A. baumannii, was identified in 25% of burn, almost 45% of mine-blast, and 30% of gunshot isolates.
Ksenchyna and colleagues noted that microbiome profiling can guide empiric antibiotic selection. For example, carbapenems like doripenem, imipenem, or meropenem could be effective treatments for A. baumannii. That said, there is a risk that overuse of any one antibiotic will lead to antimicrobial resistance (Int J Antimicrob Agents 2012;39[1]:33-38).
In a related project, Ksenchyna and colleagues evaluated 45 people with limb injuries, in three groups of 15: people who required amputation, others with limb trauma and some with limb burns (Front Pain Res 2025;6:1564994). There was no correlation between gram-negative bacteria concentration and pain severity in these groups, but Ksenchyna and colleagues noted that the sample size was small.
“We’re still doing this project, and continue to do it. We continue researching these patients as the war, unfortunately, continues,” Ksenchyna said.
Ksenchyna reported no relevant financial disclosures.
This article is from the February 2026 print issue.