Comparison of biofilm-producing Enterococcus faecalis, Enterococcus faecium, and unusual Enterococcus strains

  • Anna Sieńko Department of Microbiological Diagnostics and Infectious Immunology, Faculty of Pharmacy with the Division of Laboratory Medicine, Medical University of Bialystok, 15a Waszyngtona Street, 15-269 Bialystok, Poland
  • Dominika Ojdana Department of Microbiological Diagnostics and Infectious Immunology, Faculty of Pharmacy with the Division of Laboratory Medicine, Medical University of Bialystok, 15a Waszyngtona Street, 15-269 Bialystok, Poland
  • Piotr Majewski Department of Microbiological Diagnostics and Infectious Immunology, Faculty of Pharmacy with the Division of Laboratory Medicine, Medical University of Bialystok, 15a Waszyngtona Street, 15-269 Bialystok, Poland
  • Paweł Sacha Department of Microbiological Diagnostics and Infectious Immunology, Faculty of Pharmacy with the Division of Laboratory Medicine, Medical University of Bialystok, 15a Waszyngtona Street, 15-269 Bialystok, Poland
  • Piotr Wieczorek Department of Microbiological Diagnostics and Infectious Immunology, Faculty of Pharmacy with the Division of Laboratory Medicine, Medical University of Bialystok, 15a Waszyngtona Street, 15-269 Bialystok, Poland
  • Elżbieta Tryniszewska Department of Microbiological Diagnostics and Infectious Immunology, Faculty of Pharmacy with the Division of Laboratory Medicine, Medical University of Bialystok, 15a Waszyngtona Street, 15-269 Bialystok, Poland
Keywords: Enterococcus faecalis, Enterococcus faecium, Biofilm, Resistance, Virulence

Abstract

The present study focused on determining the prevalence of biofilm-forming ability in Enterococ-cus faecalis, E. faecium, and unusual Enterococcus clinical isolates, and comparison of resistance and the prevalence of selected virulence factors among biofilm-positive strains. The ability to form biofilm was detected in 13.3% of E. faecalis, 90% of E. faecium, and 57.1% of unusual Enterococcus strains (p=0.026). All E. faecalis strains were susceptible to β-lactams, while 37.5% of unusual and all E. faecium isolates were resistant to these antibiotics. Resistance to gentamicin was detected in 75% of E. faecalis, 55.5% of E. faecium, and 25% of other strains; resistance to streptomycin in 25%, 83.3%, and 50%, respectively. Analysis of the virulence revealed that the enterococcal surface protein (esp) gene was found in all E. faecium, 75.0% of E. faecalis, and 37.5% of other strains; collagen adhesin gene (ace) in 100%, 25.0%, and 37.5%; and hyaluronidase gene (hyl) in 83.3%, 0%, and 37.5%, respectively. Analysis of the resistance and virulence patterns showed that E. faecium isolates had the greatest variety of virulence and resistance determinants, while the lowest variety was exhibited by unusual strains. These findings indicate that unusual biofilm-producing Enterococcus strains have lower resistance and virulence potency than E. faecalis and E. faecium.

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.1000837

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Published
2017-12-31
How to Cite
(1)
Sieńko, A.; Ojdana, D.; Majewski, P.; Sacha, P.; Wieczorek, P.; Tryniszewska, E. Comparison of Biofilm-Producing Enterococcus Faecalis, Enterococcus Faecium, and Unusual Enterococcus Strains. European Journal of Biological Research 2017, 7, 291-298.
Section
Research Articles