Abstract: Objective To study the characteristics in genotype and drug resistance of clinical isolates from the patients with tuberculous meningitis. Methods Twenty-five clinical isolates from the patients with tuberculous meningitis (TBM) were analyzed by Spoligotyping, variable numbers of tandem repeats (VNTR), 15 antituberculosis drug susceptibility testing methods, in which 15 drugs were as following: isoniazid, rifampicin, ethambutol, pyrazinamide, streptomycin, kanamycin, amikacin, capreomycin, moxifloxacin, ofloxacin, levofloxacin, para amino salicylic acid, ethionamide, prothionamide, cycloserine. Results Of 25 M. tuberculosis isolates, 20 (80.0%) were Beijing genotype, 2 were T1 genotype, 3 were other genotypes (including T2, LAM6, and unclassified genotype). 12.0%（3/25）were multi-drug resistant (MDR), and 4.0% (1/25) strains were extensive drug-resistant (XDR). 8.0% (2/25) strains were resistant to fluoroquinolones, all belong to Beijing genotype. 48.0% (12/25) strains were resistant to any drug, in which 83.3%（10/12）were Beijing genotype; 52.0%(13/25) strains were sensitive, in which 76.9% (10/13) strains were Beijing genotype. Conclusion Beijing genotype strains were possibly associated with drug-resistant tuberculosis and may act as the main epidemic strain of TBM. Few strains were resistant to fluoroquinolones, which may play an important role in TBM treatment.

Key words: Tuberculosis,meningeal, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Genotype, Drug resistance,bacterial, Spoligotyping, Minisatellite repeats