Potential Role of Veillonella spp. as a Reservoir of Transferable Tetracycline Resistance in the Oral Cavity

Abstract
Twelve out of 96 Veillonella spp. isolated from oral samples harbored tetracycline resistance genes. The most common resistance gene was tet (M). A tet (M)-positive Veillonella dispar strain was shown to transfer a Tn 916 -like element to four Streptococcus spp. by conjugation at a frequency of 5.2 × 10 −6 to 4.5 × 10 −5 per recipient.