Emerging antimicrobial resistance, plasmid profile and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis pattern of the endonuclease-digested genomic DNA of Neisseriagonorrhoeae

Resistant gonococci are very prevalent in many countries, particularly in A sia. This study was conducted to determine the trend of resistance, the eff ect of decreasing the ciprofloxacin susceptibilities of gonococci on the pr evalence of penicillinase-producing N, gonorrhoeae (PPNG), and to compare t he epidemiology of strains with the previous studies. A total of 602 strain s of gonococci were isolated from prostitutes in 1997 - 1999. Antimicrobial susceptibility was tested by NCCLS disk diffusion and agar dilution method s. For epidemiologic analysis, plasmid analysis and pulsed-field gel electr ophoresis (PFGE) were performed. The proportion of PPNG remained high (79%) , and the strains with decreased susceptibility to ciprofloxacin increased significantly from 67% in 1997 to 84% in 1999. Compared to our previous stu dy, similar, while the proportion of strain with the 3.2-MDa plasmid marked ly decreased. In conclusion, the PFGE patterns were a rapid increase in cip rofloxacin-nonsusceptible strains may suggest difficulties in the treatment of gonococcal infections in the near future with the drug. The recent decr ease of PPNG with the 3.2-MDa plasmid may suggest that there is an epidemio logical change in gonococcal infections, and the prevalence of related PFGE patterns suggests the dissemination of a few clones among the high risk po pulations.