Genomic confirmation of vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus transmission from deceased donor to liver transplant recipient

PLoS One. 2017 Mar 16;12(3):e0170449. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0170449. eCollection 2017.

Abstract

In a liver transplant recipient with vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus (VRE) surgical site and bloodstream infection, a combination of pulsed-field gel electrophoresis, multilocus sequence typing, and whole genome sequencing identified that donor and recipient VRE isolates were highly similar when compared to time-matched hospital isolates. Comparison of de novo assembled isolate genomes was highly suggestive of transplant transmission rather than hospital-acquired transmission and also identified subtle internal rearrangements between donor and recipient missed by other genomic approaches. Given the improved resolution, whole-genome assembly of pathogen genomes is likely to become an essential tool for investigation of potential organ transplant transmissions.

Publication types

  • Case Reports

MeSH terms

  • Aged
  • Female
  • Genes, Bacterial*
  • Humans
  • Liver Transplantation*
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Tissue Donors*
  • Vancomycin-Resistant Enterococci / genetics*