| Congresso Brasileiro de Microbiologia 2023 | Resumo: 1315-1 | ||||
Resumo:The genus Enterococcus in the last decades have been emerging as important opportunistic pathogens, being among the leading causes of health associated infections (HAIs). This pathogenic characteristic is related both to antimicrobial resistance and to the presence of virulence genes and factors. Thus, this study aimed to evaluate 60 clinical isolates of Enterococcus spp. from different infectious and colonization origin of patients assisted at Hospital Universitário Antonio Pedro (HUAP) regarding the presence of resistance and virulence genes, the ability to form biofilm and the possible association between these features. Isolates identified as Enterococcus spp. by automated system Phoenix BD™ were collected, from December 2021 to June 2022, consecutively, isolated from different sites of infection and colonization. The isolates had their identification confirmed by MALDI-TOF MS. The search of resistant vanA, and virulence gelE and esp genes was carried out by the polymerase chain reaction method and the evaluation of biofilm formation capacity was carried out by the quantitative micromethod. Forty-one isolates of E. faecalis, 18 of E. faecium and 1 of E. gallinarum were included in the study. Most isolates (N=33) were obtained from surveillance swabs and, among those of infectious origin, most were from urine samples (N=18). The vanA gene was detected in 53,3% (N=32) of the isolates (all from surveillance samples) and the gelE and esp genes were detected in 58,3% (N=34) and 57% (N=35) of the isolates, respectively, most of them being also from surveillance samples. Most of the isolates were able to form biofilm and were characterized as strong/moderate biofilm producer. However, the presence of gelE and/or esp genes, alone or together, was not associated with this ability (p-value > 0,05). Besides, the presence of the vanA gene was associated with lower values of optical density in biofilm formation (p-value < 0,05), even in the presence of gelE and/or esp genes. E. faecalis isolates, when compared to E. faecium, as well as isolates from infectious sites, regardless of the species, also showed higher values in biofilm formation (p-value < 0,05). Interestingly, E. gallinarum isolate was obtained from a surveillance sample and, besides being known for carrying the vanC gene of intrinsic vancomycin resistance, was also positive for the presence of vanA gene and, even so, was characterized as strong/moderate biofilm producer. Therefore, we concluded that Enterococcus spp. isolated at HUAP were able to produce biofilm, despite the differences found between species, indicating the importance of constant surveillance of these pathogens in Brazilian health institutions for better understanding of their behavior. Palavras-chave: Enterococcus, VRE, Vancomycin, Biofilm, Resistance Agência de fomento:CNPq | |||||