Phenotypic and Molecular Characterization of Linezolid Resistance in Enterococci Clinical Isolates: Across-sectional Study | ||
| Egyptian Journal of Medical Microbiology | ||
| Volume 35, Issue 2, April 2026 | ||
| Document Type: New and original researches in the field of Microbiology. | ||
| DOI: 10.21608/ejmm.2025.421195.1859 | ||
| Authors | ||
| Zeinab S. Ibrahim* 1; Somia M. El-Sheikh1; Ahmed S. Mohamed2; Yosra A. Osama3; Asmaa I. Mansour1 | ||
| 1Medical Microbiology and Immunology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Zagazig University | ||
| 2Hepatology, Gastroenterology and Infectious Diseases, Faculty of Medicine, Zagazig University, Egypt | ||
| 3Clinical Pathology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Zagazig University, Egypt | ||
| Abstract | ||
| Background: Enterococci have emerged as significant nosocomial pathogens. The clinical management of enterococcal infections has become increasingly challenging due to the rise in multidrug resistant strains. Linezolid is considered a last resort therapeutic option. Objective: Determination the prevalence of linezolid resistant enterococci (LRE) in ICU infected patients, their antibiotic susceptibility pattern and the associated resistance genes. Methodology: Enterococci were identified by colonial morphology, Gram stain and biochemical reactions. VITEK®2 compact system was used for species identification. Antibiotic susceptibility testing by disc diffusion method was done for Enterococci. Linezolid resistance was confirmed by measuring minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) using E-test strips (0.016-256 μg/ml). Conventional PCR was utilized to explore linezolid resistance genes (optr A and poxt A). Results: Sixty-five enterococcal isolates (51 E.faecalis & 14 E. faecium) were recovered from 270 different clinical samples. More than half of the isolated enterococci (61.5 %) were MDR. Among 65 enterococcal isolates ,22 (33.8%) were resistant to linezolid, eleven of which harbored optr A gene while poxt-A gene was detected in 5 isolates. Conclusion: LRE were increasingly reported. Detection of optr A & poxt A genes in LRE is considered an alarm for resistance to the last resort therapeutic option for MDR Enterococci. | ||
| Keywords | ||
| Linezolid; Enterococci; Resistance | ||
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