Detection of fosfomycin resistance by the polymerase chain reaction and Western blotting.

The polymerase chain reaction and Western blotting were assessed as means of detecting plasmid-encoded fosfomycin resistance in the hope that they might facilitate epidemiological studies. The results indicated good correlation between the two methods which are more rapid, less expensive and more sensitive than DNA-DNA hybridization. Both techniques could potentially be employed for the genotypic detection of resistance to any group of antibiotics.