Comparative genome analysis reveals key genetic factors associated with probiotic property in Enterococcus faecium strains

Background Enterococcus faecium though commensal in the human gut, few strains provide a beneficial effect to humans as probiotics while few are responsible for the nosocomial infection. Comparative genomics of E. faecium can decipher the genomic differences responsible for probiotic, pathogenic and non-pathogenic properties. In this study, we compared E. faecium strain 17OM39 with a marketed probiotic, non-pathogenic non-probiotic (NPNP) and pathogenic strains.