- \(\textit {Streptococcus gallolyticus}\) subsp. \(\it gallolyticus\) (\(\textit {S. gallolyticus}\) subsp. \(\it gallolyticus\)), a member of group D streptococci, is an inhabitant of the animal and human gastrointestinal tract. Furthermore, it is a facultative pathogen which causes e.g. endocarditis, septicemia and mastitis. \(\textit {S. gallolyticus}\) subsp. \(\it gallolyticus\) may be transmitted either directly or indirectly between animals and humans. However, the transmission routes are an unsolved issue. In this study, we present systematic analyses of an \(\textit {S. gallolyticus}\) subsp. \(\it gallolyticus\) isolate of an infective endocarditis patient in relation to isolates of his laying hen flock. Isolates from pooled droppings of laying hens, pooled dust samples and human blood culture were characterized by using multilocus sequence typing (MLST) and DNA fingerprinting. MLST revealed the same allelic profile of isolates from the human blood culture and from the droppings of laying hens. In addition, these isolates showed clonal identity regarding a similar DNA fingerprinting pattern. For the first time, we received a hint that transmission of \(\textit {S. gallolyticus}\) subsp. \(\it gallolyticus\) between poultry and humans may occur. This raises the question about the zoonotic potential of isolates from poultry and should be considered in future studies.
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