Abstract
This study aimed to identify clinical or microbiological factors affecting the clinical relevance of Corynebacterium striatum isolated from blood cultures. A total of 64 isolates from 51 patients identified as C. striatum by matrix assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) and 16S rRNA gene sequencing were assessed. More than two blood cultures were positive in 25 (48.1%) patients. Diabetes, solid tumor, and a history of previous exposure to antibiotics were more common in patients with multiple positive blood cultures. Charlson comorbidity scores were also higher, and more isolates were recovered after 48 hours of hospital stay in patients with multiple positive blood cultures. Strains recovered from patients with multiple positive blood cultures produced significantly more biofilm. Based on multilocus sequence typing (MLST), sequence type (ST) 20 (31.3%) was the most dominant, followed by ST2 (20.3%) and ST23 (10.9%). There was no relationship between the number of positive blood culture sets and sequence typing. In multivariate analyses, Carlson comorbidity score (odds ratio [OR], 1.91; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.09–3.36; P = 0.03) and biofilm formation were associated with multiple positive blood cultures (OR, 17.43; 95% CI, 3.71–81.91; P = 0.03). This study provides evidence that the biofilm phenotype could contribute to determining the clinical significance of C. striatum in patients with severe underlying conditions. The predominance of certain STs suggests the relatedness of C. striatum infection and the nosocomial environment.
Highlights
Corynebacterium striatum is one of the most frequently isolated species of coryneform bacteria in clinical microbiology laboratories [1, 2]
Of the 300 gram-positive bacilli isolated from blood samples, 138 (46.0%) were identified to the species-level by MALDI-TOF MS
A discrepancy between MALDI-TOF MS and 16S rRNA sequencing was found in a single strain showing 99% similarity to C. simulans (AF537604), which is closely related to C. striatum based on a previous phylogenetic analysis study [33]
Summary
Corynebacterium striatum is one of the most frequently isolated species of coryneform bacteria in clinical microbiology laboratories [1, 2]. Because C. striatum normally inhabits the skin and mucus membrane of humans [3], the isolation of this bacterium in clinical specimens is generally regarded as contamination. Several clinical infections of C. striatum, including pneumonia, endocarditis, and septicemia, have been reported over the last decades [4,5,6,7,8]. Clinical relevance of Corynebacterium striatum decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
