title: Use of penicillin-binding proteins for the identification of enterococci.
abstract: The results of 20 physiological and fermentation tests and examination of the penicillin-binding proteins (PBPs) of 85 enterococcal strains demonstrated that the genus Enterococcus could be divided into at least nine distinct species: E. faecalis, E. faecium, E. durans, E. hirae, E. avium, E. gallinarum, E. casseliflavus, E. malodoratus and E. mundtii. Each species had a specific pattern of at least five PBPs, with molecular masses in the range of about 40-130 kDa. The pattern of PBPs may be useful for identification purposes, since some strains with unusual fermentation characteristics were assigned to species by this technique.
mesh_terms: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D002352:Carrier Proteins / Q000032:analysis*; D013293:Enterococcus faecalis / Q000145:classification; D006602:Hexosyltransferases; D008970:Molecular Weight; D002267:Muramoylpentapeptide Carboxypeptidase / Q000032:analysis*; D046915:Penicillin-Binding Proteins; D010458:Peptidyl Transferases; D013291:Streptococcus / Q000145:classification*
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D002352:Carrier Proteins; D046915:Penicillin-Binding Proteins; D010458:Peptidyl Transferases; D006602:Hexosyltransferases; D002267:Muramoylpentapeptide Carboxypeptidase