Horizontal gene transmission of the<i>cfr</i>gene to MRSA and<i>Enterococcus</i>: role of<i>Staphylococcus epidermidis</i>as a reservoir and alternative pathway for the spread of linezolid resistance

Abstract

Linezolid resistance mediated by cfr vectors, such as pSCFS7-like plasmids, can be efficiently transferred to clinical MRSA in Japanese isolates. After reaching the staphylococcal pool, the cfr gene could be spread among MRSA strains by either conjugation or transduction.