Characterization of vancomycin-resistant and vancomycin-susceptible Enterococcus faecium isolates from humans, chickens and pigs by RiboPrinting and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis.
Forty-eight vancomycin-resistant and 35 vancomycin-sensitive Danish Enterococcus faecium isolates obtained from pigs, chickens and humans, as well as the human vanA reference isolate BM4147, were characterized by EcoRI RiboPrinting and SmaI pulsed-field gel electrophoresis. RiboPrinting of the 84 isolates yielded 40 types whereas PFGE-typing yielded 57 types discriminated by differences in more than three bands. By molecular typing, both clonal spread of E. faecium as well as horizontal transmission of Tn1546 between animals and humans was supported. Furthermore, it was found that the population of E. faecium spreads freely between the animal and human reservoir.
Hammerum
A M
AM
Danish Veterinary Laboratory, Bülowsvej 27, DK-1790 Copenhagen V. Statens Serum Institut, Artillerivej 5, DK-2300 Copenhagen S, Denmark. aha@svs.dk
Fussing
V
V
Aarestrup
F M
FM
Wegener
H C
HC
D000818:Animals; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D015373:Bacterial Typing Techniques; D019729:Carbon-Oxygen Ligases / Q000235:genetics; D002645:Chickens; D015246:Deoxyribonuclease EcoRI / Q000378:metabolism; D015252:Deoxyribonucleases, Type II Site-Specific / Q000378:metabolism; D016521:Electrophoresis, Gel, Pulsed-Field; D016984:Enterococcus faecium / Q000145:classification* / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D016908:Gram-Positive Bacterial Infections / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000662:veterinary; D006801:Humans; D011201:Poultry Diseases / Q000382:microbiology; D015183:Restriction Mapping; D013552:Swine; D013553:Swine Diseases / Q000382:microbiology; D014640:Vancomycin / Q000494:pharmacology*; D020713:Vancomycin Resistance / Q000235:genetics
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D001426:Bacterial Proteins; C071437:VanA ligase, Bacteria; D014640:Vancomycin; D015246:Deoxyribonuclease EcoRI; C025651:CCCGGG-specific type II deoxyribonucleases; D015252:Deoxyribonucleases, Type II Site-Specific; D019729:Carbon-Oxygen Ligases