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Updated: Sep 20, 2025
Cefoperazone-treated Mouse Model of Clinically-relevant Clostridium difficile Strain R20291
Published on: December 10, 2016
Predominance of Clostridioides difficile PCR ribotype 181 in northern Greece, 2016-2019
Melina Kachrimanidou1, Symeon Metallidis2, Olga Tsachouridou2
1First Department of Microbiology, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Medical School, Thessaloniki, Greece.
Objectives:
The epidemiology of Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI) has undergone many changes since the beginning of this century and continues to evolve based on recent studies. Here, we performed a molecular analysis of C. difficile isolates in northern Greece across 10 health-care facilities, spanning from 2016 to 2019.
Methods:
221 C. difficile isolates were cultured from stool samples of hospitalized patients with diarrhea and screened by PCR for the presence of the toxin A (tcdA), toxin B (tcdB), the binary toxin (cdtA and cdtB) genes and the regulating gene of tcdC. PCR ribotyping of the cultured isolates was performed by a standardized protocol for capillary gel-based PCR ribotyping and an international database with well-documented reference strains.
Results:
Thirty-five different PCR ribotypes were identified. The most common RTs identified were: 181 (36%, 80/221), 017 (10%, 21/221), 126 (9%, 19/221), 078 (4%, 9/221) and 012 (4%, 8/221). Notably, the predominant RT181, with toxin profile tcdA+tcdB+cdtA+cdtB+, was identified in seven out of ten participating hospitals.
Conclusions:
Multiple C. difficile ribotypes have been circulating in the northern Greece region with RTs 181 (closely related to 027), 017, 126 and 078 being predominant.
