title: Erythromycin-resistant pharyngeal isolates of Streptococcus pyogenes recovered in Italy.
abstract: Three classes of macrolide resistance phenotypes and three different erythromycin resistance determinants were found among 127 erythromycin-resistant group A streptococcal (GAS) isolates recovered from 355 (35.8%) pediatric pharyngitis patients in Rome, Italy. According to emm and sof sequence typing results, erythromycin-resistant isolates comprised 11 different clonal types. Remarkably, 126 of the 127 macrolide-resistant isolates were serum opacity factor (sof) gene positive. These data suggest a strong association between macrolide resistance and the presence of sof among GAS isolates recovered from Italian pediatric pharyngitis patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Laboratory Medicine. Hospital Infection Control Program, Università Campus Bio-Medico, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Giordano
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Dicuonzo
authors.forename: Ersilia
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Fiscarelli
authors.forename: Giovanni
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Gherardi
authors.forename: Giulia
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Lorino
authors.forename: Fabrizio
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Battistoni
authors.forename: Simona
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Landi
authors.forename: Marina
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: De Cesaris
authors.forename: Tommasangelo
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Petitti
authors.forename: Bernard
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Beall
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D024881:Drug Resistance, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics*; D004917:Erythromycin / Q000145:classification* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy; D010614:Pharynx / Q000382:microbiology*; D013297:Streptococcus pyogenes / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D004917:Erythromycin