Bacteriocin typing of Serratia marcescens. A simplified system.

The authors describe a simplified system for the detection of bacteriocin production by Serratia marcescens with the use of six indicator strains, which include Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Citrobacter diversus, Enterobacter aerogenes (two strains), and Serratia rubidaea grown on arabinose minimal medium plates. Of the 64 possible bacteriocin types, 11 were observed; 66% of the isolates tested were found to be one of three types. Occasionally more than one bacteriocin type was observed in an individual specimen; however, serotyping or antibiograms, or both, also indicated this was a different strain. The marcescin types were stable markers. With the use of this technic, different endemic strains of Serratia were shown to predominate in various areas of the hospital. In addition, when urinary tract isolates were compared with respiratory tract isolates, significant differences were found in the predominate types. The typing of these isolates by bacteriocin production was supported by serotype and antibiotype findings. The results suggest that this simple system may be a useful tool in a general hospital.