title: Enterococci of animal origin and their significance for public health.
abstract: Enterococci are commensal bacteria in the intestines of humans and animals, but also cause infections in humans. Most often, Enterococcus faecium isolates from clinical outbreaks belong to different types than E. faecium from animals, food, and humans in the community. The same variants of the vanA gene cluster (Tn1546) encoding vancomycin resistance can be detected in enterococci of both human and animal origin. This could indicate horizontal transfer of Tn1546 between enterococci of different origin. E. faecium isolates of animal origin might not constitute a human hazard in themselves, but they could act as donors of antimicrobial resistance genes for other pathogenic enterococci. Enterococcus faecalis of animal origin seems to be a human hazard, as the same types can be detected in E. faecalis from animals, meat, faecal samples from humans in the community, and patients with bloodstream infections.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiological Surveillance and Research, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark. ama@ssi.dk
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Hammerum
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001424:Bacterial Infections / Q000382:microbiology / Q000635:transmission / Q000662:veterinary*; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D019729:Carbon-Oxygen Ligases / Q000235:genetics; D004197:Disease Reservoirs; D024881:Drug Resistance, Bacterial; D013293:Enterococcus faecalis / Q000187:drug effects / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D016984:Enterococcus faecium / Q000187:drug effects / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D005838:Genotype; D016908:Gram-Positive Bacterial Infections / Q000382:microbiology / Q000635:transmission / Q000662:veterinary*; D006801:Humans; D011634:Public Health; D015047:Zoonoses / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000635:transmission
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; C071437:VanA ligase, Bacteria; D019729:Carbon-Oxygen Ligases