Enterococcus faecium BM4339 was constitutively resistant to vancomycin (MIC, 64 microg/ml) and to low levels of teicoplanin (MIC, 4 microg/ml). A 605-bp product obtained with the V1 and V2 primers for amplification of genes encoding D-Ala:D-Ala ligases and related glycopeptide resistance proteins was sequenced after cloning. The deduced amino acid sequence had 69% identity with VanA and VanB and 43% identity with VanC, consistent with the finding that BM4339 synthesized peptidoglycan precursors terminating in D-lactate. This new type of glycopeptide resistance phenotype was designated VanD.