title: Detection of the staphylococcal multiresistance gene cfr in Macrococcus caseolyticus and Jeotgalicoccus pinnipedialis.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the presence and the genetic environment of the multiresistance gene cfr in Jeotgalicoccus pinnipedialis and Macrococcus caseolyticus from pigs.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 391 bacterial isolates with florfenicol MICs ≥16 mg/L were obtained from nasal swabs of 557 individual pigs; of these, 75 Gram-positive isolates other than staphylococci and enterococci were screened by PCR for the presence of known florfenicol resistance genes. Species assignments of the cfr-carrying isolates were based on the results of biochemical profiling and 16S rDNA sequencing. The locations of the cfr gene were determined by Southern blotting. Regions flanking each cfr gene were sequenced by a modified random primer walking strategy, and the transferability of cfr was assessed by electrotransformation.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Two M. caseolyticus isolates and one J. pinnipedialis isolate were cfr positive. The cfr gene was located either on a 7057 bp plasmid, pSS-03, which was widely distributed among staphylococci of pig origin, or on the ∼53 kb plasmid pJP1. The region of pJP1 that included the cfr gene and the adjacent IS21-558, showed 99.7% identity to the corresponding region of plasmid pSCFS3. In addition, the genes aadD + aacA-aphD, ble and erm(C), coding for aminoglycoside, bleomycin and macrolide-lincosamide-streptogramin B resistance, respectively, were also identified on plasmid pJP1.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study showed that plasmids carrying the multidrug resistance gene cfr are present in two new genera of commensal and environmental bacteria, Macrococcus and Jeotgalicoccus. This observation underlines the role of commensal and environmental flora in the dissemination of clinically important resistance genes, such as cfr.
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Development and Evaluation of Chemical and Herbal Drugs for Animal Use,  College of Veterinary Medicine, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193,  P. R. China.
authors.forename: Yang
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Yu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Stefan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Schwarz
authors.forename: Zhangqi
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Shen
authors.forename: Nan
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: Juchun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Congming
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Jianzhong
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Shen
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D015373:Bacterial Typing Techniques; D015139:Blotting, Southern; D002353:Carrier State / Q000382:microbiology*; D024901:Drug Resistance, Multiple, Bacterial; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D009666:Nose / Q000382:microbiology; D010957:Plasmids; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S / Q000235:genetics; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D040141:Staphylococcaceae / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D013203:Staphylococcal Infections / Q000382:microbiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D013552:Swine; D013839:Thiamphenicol / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D001426:Bacterial Proteins; C539943:CFR protein, Staphylococcus aureus; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S; C035534:florfenicol; D013839:Thiamphenicol