Linezolid has been reported to restore erythromycin susceptibility in erythromycin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. This phenomenon has not been reported in enterococci and the mechanisms involved therein are still unknown. The purpose of this study was to investigate the mechanisms involved and the effect of combining linezolid with erythromycin on erythromycin-resistant enterococci. Checkerboard techniques were used to determine drug interactions, and 12 of 14 isolates showed a synergistic effect between erythromycin and linezolid (fractional inhibitory concentration <0.5). We observed that the erm(B) gene, which encodes a dimethyltransferase responsible for erythromycin resistance, was expressed from transposon Tn1545 in the tested erythromycin-resistant enterococci. After exposure to linezolid, erm(B)-mediated rRNA dimethylation at A2071 could not be detected, and the erm(B) gene was lost following acquisition of erythromycin susceptibility. Thus, in conclusion, linezolid combined with erythromycin exerts a synergistic effect against erythromycin-resistant enterococci. Linezolid treatment suppressed erm(B)-mediated rRNA dimethylation at A2071, which could lead to loss of the erm(B) gene.
Keywords: dimethylation; enterococci; erm(B); erythromycin; linezolid.