The tellurium resistance gene contributes to both tellurite and zinc resistance.

is widely recognized as a pathogen responsible for hospital-acquired infections and community-acquired invasive infections. It has rapidly become a significant global public health threat due to the emergence of hypervirulent and multidrug-resistant strains, which have increased the challenges associated with treating life-threatening infections. Tellurium resistance genes are widespread on virulence plasmids in isolates. However, the core function of the operon () in remains unclear. In this study, the multidrug-resistant P1927 strain was isolated from the sputum of a hospitalized pneumonia patient. The operon, along with antimicrobial resistance and virulence genes, was identified on a large hybrid plasmid in P1927. We generated a deletion mutant and demonstrated that this mutant exhibited reduced virulence in a larva infection model. Further physiological functional analysis revealed that is not only important for Te(IV) resistance but also for resistance to Zn(II), Mn(II), and phage infection. All genes of the operon were highly inducible by Zn(II), which is a stronger inducer than Te(IV), and the genes were also induced by Mn(II). Collectively, our study demonstrates novel physiological functions of TerC in Zn(II) resistance and virulence in .IMPORTANCE has rapidly become a global threat to public health. Although the operon is widely identified in clinical isolates, its physiological function remains unclear. It has been proposed that proteins encoded by the operon form a multi-site metal-binding complex, but its exact function is still unknown. TerC, a central component of the tellurium resistance determinant, was previously shown to interact with outer membrane proteins OmpA and KpsD in , suggesting potential changes in outer membrane structure and properties. Here, we report that TerC confers resistance to Zn(II), Mn(II), and phage infection, and Zn(II) was shown to be a strong inducer of the operon. Furthermore, TerC was identified as a novel virulence factor. Taken together, our results expand our understanding of the physiological functions encoded by the operon and its role in the virulence of , providing deeper insights into the link between heavy metal(loid) resistance determinants and virulence in pathogenic bacteria.