Antimicrobial Resistance and Molecular Epidemiology of Corynebacterium striatum Isolated in a Tertiary Hospital in Turkey

Although Corynebacterium striatum is part of the human flora, it has recently drawn attention both for its multidrug resistance and its role as an invasive infection/outbreak agent. This cross-sectional study aimed to determine the antimicrobial resistance and clonal relationships among C. striatum strains. In total, 81 C. striatum strains were identified using Phoenix-100(TM) (BD, Sparks, MD, USA). The antimicrobial resistance of the strains was determined using the Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion method. Clonal relatedness among the strains was performed via arbitrarily primed polymerase chain reaction (AP-PCR). All 81 C. striatum strains were resistant to penicillin, cefotaxime, ciprofloxacin, and tetracycline, but susceptible to vancomycin and linezolid. The resistance rates to gentamicin, erythromycin, and clindamycin were 34.6%, 79%, and 87.7% respectively. AP-PCR results showed no predominant clone among the C. striatum strains. Corynebacterium striatum is reportedly the cause of an increasing number of invasive infections/outbreaks. Moreover, treatment options are limited. The study showed that vancomycin, linezolid, and gentamicin can be selected for the empirical treatment of C. striatum infections. Although no single-clone outbreak was observed in our hospital, small clonal circulations were observed within some units, indicating cross-contamination. Therefore, a comprehensive infection control program is warranted in future.