title: Prevalence of macrolide resistance genes among staphylococci in Cyprus.
abstract: The aims of the present study were to evaluate the frequency of macrolide-resistant staphylococci in Cyprus and to examine the phenotypic and genotypic characteristics of these isolates. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing was performed by broth microdilution method and the macrolide resistance determinants were detected by PCR. The relatedness among the isolates was examined by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis. Ninety-six (67.61%) of the 142 Staphylococcus aureus and 19 (59.4%) of the 32 coagulase-negative staphylococci were resistant to erythromycin. Among the 115 erythromycin-resistant staphylococci, 70 expressed the MLSB-inducible phenotype, 38 the MLSB-constitutive, and 7 the MS. The predominant genes associated with macrolide resistance were the ermA for S. aureus and the ermC for coagulase-negative staphylococci, detected in 90.62% and 47.37% of the isolates respectively. Dissemination of one clone carrying the ermA gene accounted for macrolide resistance in the majority of S. aureus isolates.
authors.affiliation: First Department of Propaedeutic Medicine, Athens University, Athens, Greece.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Petrikkos
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Vallianou
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Evangelopoulos
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gourni
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Bagatzouni
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Syriopoulou
authors.forename: G L
authors.initials: GL
authors.lastname: Daikos
mesh_terms: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D015373:Bacterial Typing Techniques; D002981:Clindamycin / Q000494:pharmacology; D003030:Coagulase / Q000235:genetics; D003535:Cyprus; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000032:analysis; D024901:Drug Resistance, Multiple, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics*; D005787:Gene Frequency; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D018942:Macrolides / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008780:Methyltransferases / Q000235:genetics; D010641:Phenotype; D013210:Staphylococcus / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics*; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000235:genetics; D014769:Virginiamycin / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D003030:Coagulase; D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D018942:Macrolides; D014769:Virginiamycin; C113825:quinupristin; D002981:Clindamycin; D008780:Methyltransferases; C431709:ErmA protein, Bacteria; C035181:rRNA (adenosine-O-2'-)methyltransferase; C113826:dalfopristin