title: Antimicrobial resistance of Enterococcus sp. isolated from the intestinal tract of patients from a university hospital in Brazil.
abstract: This study reports the results about antimicrobial resistance of Enterococcus spp. isolated from intestinal tract of patients from a university hospital in Brazil. The identification of strains at species level was performed by conventional biochemical tests, API 20 Strep (bioMérieux), and polymerase chain reaction assay. The species distribution was E. faecium (34%), followed by E. faecalis (33%), E. gallinarum (23.7%), E. casseliflavus (5.2%), E. avium (1%), and E. hirae (1%). Intrinsic resistance to vancomycin characterized by presence of vanC genes was found in E. gallinarum and E. casseliflavus. The high prevalence of VanC phenotype enterococci is very important because these species have been reported as causing a wide variety of infections. Vancomycin-resistant E. faecium or E. faecalis were not found and no one isolate of these species was a beta-lactamase producer. Thirteen clinical isolates of enterococci (13.4%) showed multiresistance patterns, which were defined by resistance to three classes of antibiotics plus resistance to at least one aminoglycoside (gentamicin and/or streptomycin). The resistance to several antimicrobials shown by enterococcal strains obtained in this study is of concern because of the decrease in the therapeutic options for treatment of infections caused by enterococci.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Análises Clínicas, Toxicológicas e Bromatológicas, Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas, USP, 14040-903 Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Andresa
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Maschieto
authors.forename: Roberto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Martinez
authors.forename: Izabel Cristina Vanzato
authors.initials: IC
authors.lastname: Palazzo
authors.forename: Ana Lúcia da Costa
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Darini
mesh_terms: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D001938:Brazil; D024881:Drug Resistance, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics; D016983:Enterococcus / Q000145:classification / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D005838:Genotype; D016908:Gram-Positive Bacterial Infections / Q000382:microbiology*; D006801:Humans; D007410:Intestinal Diseases / Q000382:microbiology*; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D020713:Vancomycin Resistance / Q000235:genetics; D001618:beta-Lactamases / Q000096:biosynthesis
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D001618:beta-Lactamases