Ribotyping, Antibiotic Resistance Pattern, and Virulence Factors of Vancomycin-Resistant Enterococcus faecium Isolates From UTIs

摘要

Aims: This study was performed to assess the virulence factors and antibiotic resistance of Enterococcus faecium isolated from urinary tract infection and genetic relatedness of the vancomycin-resistant isolates. Materials and Methods: The ribotyping, antibiotic resistance pattern, and the presence of virulence factor genes were examined in the isolated vancomycin-resistant E. faecium.Results: Of 759 urine samples, 40 (5.3%) vancomycin-resistant E. faecium were isolated. Seventeen ribotypes were identified among the isolates. The most common ribotype patterns (A-G) constituted approximately 75% of the isolates and they were resistant to 4 antibiotics including ciprofloxacin, erythromycin, ampicillin, and gentamicin. The highest (100%) and lowest (5%) resistance among E. faecium strains isolated from urinary tract infection were found against ampicillin and chloramphenicol, respectively. The results showed that the isolates with certain ribotype, A, B, D, E, and F, always carried esp gene, whereas the other isolates with ribotypes A and B always lacked hyl gene. Conclusions: The results may suggest the genetic linkage of hyl and esp genes with certain genotype as determined by ribotyping.