title: Subtyping and antimicrobial susceptibility of Clostridium difficile PCR ribotype 078/126 isolates of human and animal origin.
abstract: The Clostridium difficile PCR ribotype complex 078/126 (RT078/126) is often involved in human disease and is also frequently isolated from diverse animal species. The high genetic relatedness between human and animal RT078/126 isolates found in different regions has encouraged discussion about the zoonotic potential of this lineage. We compared for the first time the genetic diversity and antimicrobial susceptibility profiles of human and animal C. difficile RT078/126 isolates from Spain. A collection of 96 isolates (50 of human and 46 of animal origin; 63 and 33 of ribotypes 078 and 126, respectively) was subtyped by an improved amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) fingerprinting method and tested for in vitro antimicrobial susceptibility. A total of 67 genotypes were distinguished, three of which grouped together isolates of human and animal origin. Furthermore, two main groups of isolates that mostly correlated with PCR ribotypes could be distinguished in the AFLP dendrogram. Human origin was significantly associated with resistance to ertapenem, erythromycin and moxifloxacin; resistance to clindamycin and erythromycin was associated with RT126 and AFLP group 1. Twenty-nine isolates (30.2% of total) displayed heteroresistance to metronidazole. Substantial differences were observed in the susceptibility profiles of isolates belonging to a same genotype. Altogether, these results provide a valuable baseline for future studies on the epidemiology of C. difficile RT078/126.
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal Health, Faculty of Veterinary, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Sergio
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Álvarez-Pérez
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal Health, Faculty of Veterinary, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain. Electronic address: jlblanco@ucm.es.
authors.forename: José L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Blanco
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Microbiology, Center of Infectious Diseases, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, Netherlands.
authors.forename: Celine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Harmanus
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Microbiology, Center of Infectious Diseases, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, Netherlands.
authors.forename: Ed
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Kuijper
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal Health, Faculty of Veterinary, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Marta E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: García
mesh_terms: D054458:Amplified Fragment Length Polymorphism Analysis; D000818:Animals; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D016360:Clostridioides difficile / Q000145:classification* / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D024881:Drug Resistance, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics; D004761:Enterocolitis, Pseudomembranous / Q000382:microbiology*; D006801:Humans; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D021521:Ribotyping
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents
keywords: Amplified fragment length polymorphism; Antimicrobial susceptibility; Clostridium difficile; PCR ribotyping