Antimicrobial resistance and virulence genes in Enterococcus faecium and Enterococcus faecalis from humans and retail red meat

Golob, Majda (author), Pate, Mateja (author), Kušar, Darja (author), Dermota, Urška (author), Avberšek, Jana (author), Papić, Bojan (author), Zdovc, Irena (author)

The emergence of antimicrobial-resistant and virulent enterococci is a major public health concern. While enterococci are commonly found in food of animal origin, the knowledge on their zoonotic potential is limited. The aim of this study was to determine and compare the antimicrobial susceptibility and virulence traits of Enterococcus faecalis and Enterococcus faecium isolates from human clinical specimens and retail red meat in Slovenia. A total of 242 isolates were investigated: 101 from humans (71 E. faecalis, 30 E. faecium) and 141 from fresh beef and pork (120 E. faecalis, 21 E. faecium). The susceptibility to 12 antimicrobials was tested using a broth microdilution method, and the presence of seven common virulence genes was investigated using PCR. In both species, the distribution of several resistance phenotypes and virulence genes was disparate for isolates of different origin. All isolates were susceptible to daptomycin, linezolid, teicoplanin, and vancomycin. In both species, the susceptibility to antimicrobials was strongly associated with a food origin and the multidrug resistance, observed in 29.6% of E. faecalis and 73.3% E. faecium clinical isolates, with a clinical origin (Fisher’s exact test). Among meat isolates, in total 66.0% of E. faecalis and E. faecium isolates were susceptible to all antimicrobials tested and 32.6% were resistant to either one or two antimicrobials. In E. faecalis, several virulence genes were significantly associated with a clinical origin; the most common (31.0%) gene pattern included all the tested genes except hyl. In meat isolates, the virulence genes were detected in E. faecalis only and the most common pattern included ace, efaA, and gelE (32.5%), of which gelE showed a statistically significant association with a clinical origin. These results emphasize the importance of E. faecalis in red meat as a reservoir of virulence genes involved in its persistence and human infections with reported severe outcomes.

• Language: English
• Keywords: Anti-bacterial agents - pharmacology, drug resistance bacterial - genetics, Enterococcus faecalis - genetics - drug effects - growth & development, Enterococcus faecium - genetics - drug effects - growth & development, virulence factors - genetics, meat - microbiology, vancomycin resistance - genetics, models animal, veterinary drugs
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: VF - Veterinary Faculty
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Publisher: Hindawi Pub
• Year: 2019
• Number of pages: Str. 1-12
• Numbering: Vol. 2019, art. ID 2815279
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-108955
• UDC: 636.09:597
• ISSN on article: 2314-6141
• DOI: 10.1155/2019/2815279
• COBISS.SI-ID: 4816506
• Publication date in RUL: 13.08.2019

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: BioMed research international
• Shortened title: Biomed Res Int
• Publisher: Hindawi Publishing
• ISSN: 2314-6141
• COBISS.SI-ID: 30624729

Licences

• License: CC BY 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Description: This is the standard Creative Commons license that gives others maximum freedom to do what they want with the work as long as they credit the author.
• Licensing start date: 13.08.2019

Projects

• Funder: ARRS - Slovenian Research Agency
• Project number: P4-0092
• Name: Zdravje živali, okolje in varna hrana