Recent update on enterococcal resistance to the last-resort antimicrobials among livestock animals and retail meats

Enterococcus species are considered as parts of the indicator strains for fecal contamination on retail meats because they reside in the gastrointestinal tracts of humans and animals. Frequent acquisition and dissemination of antibiotic resistance genes among enterococci have increased their morbidity and mortality rates and thus become a serious public health issue. For example, vancomycin (Van)-resistant and/or multidrug resistant (MDR) enterococci are increased during recent years. Currently, only a few therapeutic options have been approved for linezolid (LZD), daptomycin (DAP), and tigecycline (TGC) to treat VAN-resistant and/or MDR enterococcal infections. In this review, we have updated the recent status of enterococcal resistance to those three last-resort antimicrobials (LZD, DAP, TGC) among livestock animals and retail meats.