Characterisation of and polysaccharide production by amoxycillin-resistant streptococci
Characterisation of and polysaccharide production by amoxycillin-resistant streptococci
Small numbers of bacteria capable of growing on agar supplemented with amoxycillin 40 mg/L were isolated from the saliva of 9 out of 20 adult volunteers in a previous study. All the bacteria were identified as Streptococcus sanguis although no strains produced dextran in conventional tests. However, using a specific assay, all the antibiotic-resistant strains were found to secrete glucosyltransferases (GTF), the enzymes that synthesise these extracellular polysaccharides; the production of GTF-S, the enzyme that synthesises dextran, was 22-43% less than that of an antibiotic-sensitive control strain. Enzyme production by both antibiotic-resistant and sensitive bacteria was markedly inhibited by dextran primer. The amoxycillin-resistant bacteria were resistant to other penicillins; their resistance to erythromycin was variable but they were uniformly sensitive to cephalothin and clindamycin. As dextran production has been proposed as a key factor in the colonisation of damaged heart valves by bacteria such as S. sanguis, these highly resistant bacteria may not pose a threat to the susceptible individual.
259-262
Marsh, P. D.
9d226405-bfd2-432b-ac22-ea619f706805
West, A. A.
5f1b2798-9f0f-4e4b-875c-bec8bab6b820
Keevil, C. W.
cb7de0a7-ce33-4cfa-af52-07f99e5650eb
1 November 1987
Marsh, P. D.
9d226405-bfd2-432b-ac22-ea619f706805
West, A. A.
5f1b2798-9f0f-4e4b-875c-bec8bab6b820
Keevil, C. W.
cb7de0a7-ce33-4cfa-af52-07f99e5650eb
Marsh, P. D., West, A. A. and Keevil, C. W.
(1987)
Characterisation of and polysaccharide production by amoxycillin-resistant streptococci.
Journal of Medical Microbiology, 24 (3), .
(doi:10.1099/00222615-24-3-259).
Abstract
Small numbers of bacteria capable of growing on agar supplemented with amoxycillin 40 mg/L were isolated from the saliva of 9 out of 20 adult volunteers in a previous study. All the bacteria were identified as Streptococcus sanguis although no strains produced dextran in conventional tests. However, using a specific assay, all the antibiotic-resistant strains were found to secrete glucosyltransferases (GTF), the enzymes that synthesise these extracellular polysaccharides; the production of GTF-S, the enzyme that synthesises dextran, was 22-43% less than that of an antibiotic-sensitive control strain. Enzyme production by both antibiotic-resistant and sensitive bacteria was markedly inhibited by dextran primer. The amoxycillin-resistant bacteria were resistant to other penicillins; their resistance to erythromycin was variable but they were uniformly sensitive to cephalothin and clindamycin. As dextran production has been proposed as a key factor in the colonisation of damaged heart valves by bacteria such as S. sanguis, these highly resistant bacteria may not pose a threat to the susceptible individual.
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Accepted/In Press date: 10 January 1987
Published date: 1 November 1987
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Local EPrints ID: 431322
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/431322
ISSN: 0022-2615
PURE UUID: 67576dff-1248-4ffb-889f-421e89858726
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Date deposited: 29 May 2019 16:30
Last modified: 16 Mar 2024 03:24
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Author:
P. D. Marsh
Author:
A. A. West
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