Characteristics of Streptococcus suis isolated from patients in Japan.

Seven cases of Streptococcus suis infection in Japan during 1994 and 2006 were summarized. All cases had porcine exposure and five of them had hand skin injury during the exposure. Five cases presented symptoms of meningitis, three presented symptoms of sepsis, and one resulted in sudden death. All of the isolated S. suis belonged to Lancefield's group D and to serotype 2. They were susceptible to penicillin G, ampicillin, cefotaxime, and ciprofloxacin. However, six of them were resistant to both erythromycin and clindamycin, and four were also resistant to minocycline. Multilocus sequence typing of six isolates showed that they belonged to sequence type (ST) 1, and their pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) patterns were similar. The remaining isolate was ST28 and its PFGE pattern was distinct from those of the others.

[Purulent meningitis caused by Streptococcus suis in a pig breeder].

A case of Purulent meningitis caused by Streptococcus suis type 2 is reported here. It occurred in a 58-year-old male pig breeder. A few days before presentation, the patient had experienced headache, systemic articular pain and fever (38.8 degrees C). On admission, he was stuporous and had neck stiffness and hemiparesis. Examination of cerebrospinal fluid showed purulent meningitis. The cultures identified Streptococcus suis II by PCR and specific serum. 2 months later, the patient was discharged in good clinical condition except for hearing loss. Streptococcus suis is known to be an important pathogen in the swine industry, this report is the first case of S. suis meningitis in man, in Japan.

Characterization of cefotaxime-resistant Escherichia coli isolates from a nosocomial outbreak at three geriatric hospitals.

Over a 22-month period, there was an unusual upsurge in the incidence of cefotaxime-resistant Escherichia coli among hospitalized patients in three geriatric hospitals in the same district. Sixteen highly cefotaxime-resistant strains were obtained from clinical specimens during the period January 1996 through October 1997. All strains were characterized by antibiotic resistance pattern analysis, the detection of the TEM- and Toho-type beta-lactamase or CTX-M-type beta-lactamase gene by polymerase chain reaction (PCR), plasmid profiling, Southern hybridization analysis, and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). Antibiotic resistance analysis showed that all strains were highly resistant to ampicillin, piperacillin, carbenicillin, cephaloridine, and cefotaxime; intermediately resistant to cefoxitin; moderately susceptible to moxalactam and ceftazidime; and susceptible to imipenem. Detailed analysis of beta-lactamase content revealed that all cefotaxime-resistant strains harbored a plasmid that mediated an extended-spectrum beta-lactamase of the Toho-type or CTX-M-type by PCR and Southern hybridization analysis. PCR detection showed that all the E. colistrains, except for strains TUM1023, TUM1101, TUM1227, and TUM1229, also possessed bla(TEM) genes. Furthermore, Southern hybridization analysis showed that all strains, except for TUM1102, gave a similar signal with the Toho probe. The PFGE profiles of the E. colistrains obtained with XbaI showed four patterns that correlated well with the plasmid profiles. The Dice value of 15 strains, including Toho-2 producer (TUM1083), for their PFGE patterns indicated a similarity of 80% or more. Our results suggest that 15 of the 17 Toho type beta-lactamase-producing E. coli strains (including strain TUM1083) studied belong to a single epidemic strain, while the other two strains are different from them, and the Toho-type or CTX-M-type beta-lactamase encoding gene may be acquired by plasmid conjugation or a mobile element.