Genotypic characterization of Enterococcus species isolated from the oral cavity and their pattern of antibiotic susceptibility

Abstract

Background: Enterococci comprise a small share of oral flora and occur as contaminants in food such as meat and cheese. They are commonly encountered in patients with infections of oral tissues such as necrotic pulp, root canals and periodontitis. Objectives: To characterize the genotypes of Enterococcus isolated from patients with oral infection and to determine their antibiotic susceptibility. Methods: We genotypically characterized a number of isolates of Enterococcus species derived from patients with various oral infections. All the isolates were tested for the presence of putative virulence genes; efaA (gene for endocarditis), gelE (gene for gelatinase), ace (gene for collagen binding antigen), asa (gene for aggregation substance), cylA (gene for cytolysin activator), and esp (gene for surface adhesin) of E. faecalis and E. faecium as described in previous studies. Results: E. faecalis dominated in oral infections compared with E. faecium. Isolates were susceptible to most antibiotics (only four were resistant to vancomycin). To our knowledge, the first report from this region. Conclusions: Treatment of enterococcal infections of the oral mucosal and deep oral areas necessitate microbiological diagnosis and identification of resistance strains. Keywords: Antibiotic susceptibility pattern, Enterococcus species, genotypic characterization, oral infections