Transposons Encoding Trimethoprim or Gentamicin Resistance in Medically Important Bacteria

Abstract

An understanding of the epidemiology of antibiotic resistance depends on the ability to recognize particular bacterial strains, their plasmids, and the resistance genes that they carry. We have collected and studied bacteria resistant to trimethoprim (Tpr) and/or gentamicin (Gmr) with the aim of elucidating the spread of resistance. Our study dates back to the introduction of these drugs to medicine in the late 1960s. Trimethoprim resistance is important in bacteria that cause infections in the community as well as in hospitals, whereas the problems presented by gentamicin resistance are encountered chiefly in hospitals.