Macrolide-lincosamide-streptogramin group B (MLS) resistant strains were found among enterococci isolated from caeca of poultry, pigs and cattle. The percentage of MLS resistance among the poultry strains was 70 per cent. The Streptococcus faecium strains were more susceptible than the other enterococcal strains to virginiamycin, a member of the streptogramin class of antibiotics. This was due to higher susceptibility of the S faecium strains to the virginiamycin component M which belongs to the streptogramin group A antibiotics. Ability to inactivate clindamycin, an antibiotic of the lincosamide class of antibiotics, was noted in an unclassified group D streptococcus strain isolated from a pig.
