Antibiotic selection may contribute to increases in macrolide-resistant Treponema pallidum

J Infect Dis. 2006 Dec 15;194(12):1771-3. doi: 10.1086/509512. Epub 2006 Nov 3.

Abstract

To determine whether the 23S rRNA mutation that confers macrolide resistance is present in >1 Treponema pallidum strain, 58 isolates collected between 2001 and 2005 were screened for this mutation and for an unrelated sequence that distinguishes between strains. The odds of identifying a macrolide-resistant strain increased over time (P=.006). In subjects who had received macrolides in the previous year, the relative risk of harboring a resistant strain was 2.2 (95% confidence interval, 1.1-4.4; P=.02). The macrolide-resistant strains were not identical. These findings suggest that macrolide resistance may be increasing in multiple strains in response to antibiotic pressure.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

MeSH terms

  • Drug Resistance, Bacterial / genetics
  • Female
  • HIV Infections / complications
  • Humans
  • Macrolides / pharmacology*
  • Macrolides / therapeutic use
  • Male
  • Mutation
  • RNA, Bacterial / genetics
  • RNA, Ribosomal, 23S / genetics
  • Selection, Genetic
  • Syphilis / complications
  • Syphilis / drug therapy
  • Syphilis / microbiology*
  • Treponema pallidum / drug effects*
  • Treponema pallidum / genetics
  • Treponema pallidum / isolation & purification*
  • Washington

Substances

  • Macrolides
  • RNA, Bacterial
  • RNA, Ribosomal, 23S