Rapid identification of Enterococcus hirae and Enterococcus durans by PCR and detection of a homologue of the E. hirae mur-2 gene in E. durans

During an evaluation of PCR for identification of isolates of Enterococcus hirae, a homologue with 82% identity to E. hirae mur-2 was identified in Enterococcus durans and was named mur-2_ed. PCR using primers for two genes (copY and murG) of E. hirae strains showed amplification with E. hirae strains only. PCR (under high-stringency conditions) with primers for the mur-2_ed gene gave the expected amplification product only with E. durans strains. A combination of murG and mur-2_ed primers in a multiplex PCR assay differentiated E. hirae from E. durans in all cases. PCR using these primers appears to be a rapid alternative for identification of E. hirae and E. durans isolates.