Prof. O. O. KuforijiAMODU, Zainab Ejile2026-08-272026-08-272019-03-30https://ir.bellsuniversity.edu.ng/handle/123456789/503xii,65pages,illustration;.hardbackStaphylococcus saprophyticus is a coagulase-negative (CoNS) coccus associated primarily with community-acquired lower urinary tract infection (UTI). This study investigated presence of antibiotic resistant genes (ARG) and susceptibility pattern of S. saprophyticus from women with UTI. Fifty (50) S. Saprophyticus strains obtained from four hospitals were identified morphologically and biochemically. Antibiotic resistance pattern was determined via Kirby-Bauer dise diffusion method against 14 antibiotics: Ceftazidime (CAZ), Cefuroxime (CRX), Gentamicin (GEN), Ceftriazone (CTR), Erythromycin (ERY), Cloxacillin (CXC), Ofloxacin (OFL), Augmentin (AUG), Cefdinir (RNF), Ciprofloxacin (CPT), Oxacillin (OX), Mipenem (MIP), Levofloxacin (LVS) and Pefloxacin (PEF). Presence of ARGs ermA, aac(6')-aph(2"'), mecA, blaZ and femB was confirmed on gel electrophoresis by standard methods. Multiple Antibiotic Resistance Index (MARI) was also determined, while plasmid-mediated antibiotic resistance was investigated. S. saprophyticus strains were resistant to ERY, AUG, OX and CXC, while MIP, PEF and LVS susceptibility was observed. No isolate had 100% sensitivity to the antibiotics, 13 (26%) were sensitive to ≥50% antibiotics, five (G95, G98, G112, S09, S26) were resistant to >90% of antibiotics, while one strain (S09) exhibited total resistance. All strains had >20% MARI while two-thirds had ≥0.5 MARI. Seventy percent of S. saprophyticus expressed both mecA and femB, three (3) strains expressed all ARGs (S04, S26, L90), or did not express any (M60, M123, M48), while 64% expressed at least two ARGs. Resistance genes mecA and femB were the most expressed genes (Hospitals G, S and L), while <50% of strains expressed BlaZ. Fourteen (14) strains had plasmid-mediated resistance, while 50% plasmid-mediated resistance was observed in hospital L. This study, therefore, showed that increased antibiotic-resistance and presence of ARGs in S. saprophyticus means the pathogen should be given better attention by clinics in cases of bacteremia, bacteriuria, septicemia and UTI cases.enAttribution 4.0 InternationalGenesAntibioticsDissertation