• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.131-133
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• 1999

In order to the investigate epidemiological characteristics of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), 31 strains of Staphylococcus aureus were isolated from the equipments of two hospitals in Chonbuk. And their antimicrobial resistance patterns against 7 kinds of antimicrobial agents and the identification of MRSA by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) were studied. Seven strains among 10 strains of methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus showed 554 bp DNA which was a part of mecA gene in PCR analysis.

• Journal of Veterinary Clinics
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.194-198
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• 2014

Methicillin-resistant staphylococci (MRS) are emerging as important pathogens in humans and animals worldwide. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of MRS in the racehorse population and in horse-related personnel in Korea. A total of 195 horses and 18 humans (eight veterinarians, three veterinary hospital staff, and seven horse-handlers) from racehorse farms in Korea were included in the study. The samples were collected from nasal cavities using bacterial transport medium and were cultivated on tryptic soy agar with 5% sheep blood for 3 days at $37^{\circ}C$ to confirm the presence of Staphylococcus spp. Presumptive Staphylococcus spp. isolates were identified by 16S ribosomal RNA gene analysis. The coagulase test and oxacillin susceptibility tests were performed using the tube dilution and disk diffusion methods, respectively. The presence of the mecA gene was determined using a polymerase chain reaction assay. Of the 195 horses, 29 (15.6%) yielded 29 MRS isolates. Twelve (66.7%) of the 18 horse-related personnel yielded 12 MRS isolates. All of the MRS isolates from horses or horse-related personnel were identified as methicillin-resistant coagulase-negative staphylococci (MRCNS). The result of this study suggest that the prevalence of MRS increased with the duration of antibiotic use (p = 0.002). This study also provides evidence for the zoonotic transmission of MRCNS between horses and humans, although further investigations are needed.

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.5 no.2
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• pp.135-145
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• 1999

A total of 45 Staphylococcus aureus strains from clinical samples were tested for the biochemical test and antibiotic susceptibility test. Forty-five S. aureus strains were subjected to the molecular epidemiological study by susceptiblity test, antibiogram, bacteriophage typing, polymerase chain reaction and mec-associated hypervariable region gene in order to detect of mecA gene which was one of the structural gene related to antibiotic resistant expression factors. Three of 15 mecA-negative S. aureus isolates were classified as oxacillin resistant despite borderline minimal inhibitory concentration values. Methicillin susceptiblities were completely consistent with PCR results for these strains. On the other hand, 4 of 30 mecA-positive isolates yielded results in the oxacillin and methicillin susceptibility tests which were discrepant from those of PCR analysis. Except for SA6, the methicillin resistant S. aureus strains tested were highly resistant to penicillin, oxacillin, gentamicin, and chloramphenicol. In the phage typing, 27 strains were typable. The Iytic group III was as many as 12 strains, and 7 of 12 were 75/83A/84 type. In the PCR of specific mecA gene probe with chromosomal DNA of 30 methicillin resistant S. aureus, the amplified DNA band of 533 bp was confirmed in 30 strains and not in methicillin sensitive S. aureus. The single amplified band of hypervariable region related to mec was investigated in all of 30 methicillin resistant S. aureus, but in methicillin sensitive S. aureus it was amplified. The size of PCR products was between 200 bp and 600 Up. Four units was directly repeated.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.223-227
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• 2014

This study was investigated to determine the prevalence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) isolated from raw milk samples and to further study on the molecular characteristics of the MRSA isolates. Using Staphylococcus Medium 110, Staphylococcus spp. were isolated from raw milk samples and further identification was carried by Vitek2 system. Minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of antibiotics were conducted by serial dilution method according to the Clinical Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) guideline. For the detection of resistance genes and molecular characterization, PCR reaction was performed by gene specific primers and followed by DNA sequencing. Of the 698 milk samples, 94 Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) were identified (94 S. aureus/286 Staphylococcus spp.). Of the 94 S. aureus, seven isolates have mecA, a methicillin resistant gene. mecA positive seven isolates were then characterized by staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec (SCCmec) typing, and Panton-Valentine Leukocidin (pvl) gene using PCR. All of mecA positive isolates were resistant to ampicillin and oxacillin, but sensitive to teicoplanin, vancomycin and ciprofloxacin. One of seven isolates was SCCmec type II and six isolates were type IV and all seven isolates were pvl gene negative.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.47 no.4
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• pp.381-385
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• 2011

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is one of major pathogen causing hospital infection and several diseases such as purulent infection, bacteremia. The isolation ratio of MRSA is gradually increased up to 80% in the hospital, which makes a limitation for treatment of antibiotics because the isolated MRSA show resistance to methicillin as well as other antibiotics. This study proposes that mecA detecting methods which are not commonly used because of cost in the hospital is a more accurate method than Susceptibility Testing to detect a MRSA. We compared Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 29213 as a negative control and 20 MRSA strains isolated from patients by these two methods. We amplified mecA gene by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and confirmed the PCR products by sequencing. All of the MRSA showed oxacillin and cefoxitin resistance whereas 85% (16/19) of the strains had mecA wildtype. These results suggest that some of the MRSA are mecA mutants therefore mecA genotyping reinforces the MRSA detection by antibiotic susceptibility test.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.38 no.4
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• pp.306-311
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• 2002

PCR of the mecA gene for the rapid detection of methicillin-resistant staphylococci was perfomed and compared with the antibiotic sensitivity test. A total of 43 strains of staphylococi from clinical specimens were used in this study. An antibiotic sensitivity test by the agar dilution method of NCCLS (The National Commitee for Clinical Laboratory Standard) was performed for the strains. Among them, 39 isolates were methicillin-resistant (MRS), and 4 isolates were methicillin-susceptible (MSS). With the exception for one strain (Staphylococcus cohnii, HRC2-4), all MRS strains amplified the expected 533 bp fragments of the mecA gene by PCR, However, one strain (Staphylococcus aureus, HSA1-10) that was classified as a sensitive strain by the antibiotic sensitivity test was mecA positive by PCR. All 35 methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) strains were mecA positive, but overall, concordance between the results of the mecA PCR and antibiotic sensitivity test was 95.6%.

• Journal of Korean Biological Nursing Science
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.5-14
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• 2006

Staphyloccus aureus is one of the most important pathogens in clinical settings. It is also one of the leading causes of nosocomial infections and the dissemination of multiple drug-resistant strains, mainly methicillin resistant Staphyloccus aureus, and the recent emergence of a vancomycin resistant MRSA is the concern to hospital worldwide. MRSA strains have acquired multiple resistance to a wide range of antibiotics, including aminoglycosides and macrolides. $\beta$-Lactam resistance of methicillin-resistnat Staphyococcus aureus is determined by the function of penicillin binding protein 2'(PBP2') encoded by the methicillin resistance gene mec A. MRSA strains carry methicillin resistance gene mecA, encoded by a mobile genetic element designated staphylococoal cassette chromosome mec(SCCmec). MRSA clones are defined by the type of SCCmec element and the genotype of the methicilline-susceptible Staphyococcus aureus chromosome in which the SCCmec element is integrated.

• Journal of Veterinary Clinics
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.302-307
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• 2003

Although, in human medicine, strains of methicillin-resistant staphylococi have become the most important causative agents of nosocomial infections, studies on the small animals are very. limited. The aim of this study was to determine mecA gene and susceptibility to antibiotics of staphylococci strains isolated from clinically ill or healthy dogs and cats, during the period August 2002-July 2003. A total of 136 staphylococci (87 coagulase-positive and 49 coagulase-negative) were investigated for antibiotic resistance, using disk diffusion and minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) test. The mecA gene was detected using the polymerase chain reaction. The isolates belonged to the species S. aureus (53 isolates), S. intermedius (34 isolates), S. epidermidis (26 isolates) and other coagulase-negative staphylococci (CNS, 23 isolates). Of the 136 isolates, 43 (31.6%) were mecA-positive and the frequency of the ,presence of mecA gene varied among the different species. All S. aureus strains were mecA-negative and were found to be susceptible, with an oxacillin MIC $\leq$1 $\mu\textrm{g}$/ml. Five (13.6%) isolates of 36 that exhibited oxacillin resistance on the MIC testing were found to be mecA-negative, suggesting not all mecA-positive strains may be an oxacillin resistant. However, the mecA presence of the strains was correlated with high oxacillin resistance: 71.4% (10 isolates of 14; P < 0.001) for mecA-positive S. intermedius and 72.4% (21 isolates of 29; P < 0.001) for mecA-positive CNS isolates. About 69% (94 isolates of 136) showed resistance to at least one drug, and 22.8% (31 isolates) were resistant to four or more different drug classes. Resistance (36 isolates, 71.7%) to penicillin G was a common finidng. This study suggest that the mecA-positive staphylococci are prevalent in small animals, and selection of antibiotics to treat infections caused by mecA-positive staphylococci may be very limited because of multi-drug resistance.

• Journal of Veterinary Clinics
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.446-448
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• 2011

A 1-year-old, male, captive born Burmese Python (Python molurus bivittatus) presented with cloudiness of the left eye after ecdysis. Based on physical examination and history, subspectacular abscess was diagnosed. The causative microorganism was identified as a methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). MRSA is a zoonotic problem of high concern and is a risk in public health and veterinary medicine. To our limited knowledge, this is the first reported case of MRSA infection in snakes.

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.6 no.3
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• pp.201-208
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• 2000

The vancomycin, one of the family of glycopeptide antibiotics, inhibits the synthesis of bacterial cell wall peptidoglycan and has been widely used against gram-positive bacterial infections, especially for a treatment of methicillin resistant S. aureus infection. However, clinical isolate which was intermediately resistant to vancomycin (Mu50: MIC 8 $\mu\textrm{g}$/ml) was isolated in recent years. In this study we performed vancomycin susceptibility test with the increment method and population analysis with clinical isolates S. aureus. Also we did several kinds of tests with three selected isolates (s129: MIC 7 $\mu\textrm{g}$/ml, s134: MIC 7 $\mu\textrm{g}$/ml, s135: MIC 8 $\mu\textrm{g}$/ml) to find out possible mechanism of vancomycin resistance. As a result, the prevalence of vancomycin resistant S. aureus isolates among S. aureus strains resistant to methicillin was 23.3% (25/107). The vancomycin resistances of isolated strains of S. aureus were between those of Mu5O and Mu3 strains. By PCR analysis, none of the isolates with decreased vancomycin susceptibility contained known vancomycin resistant genes such as vanA, vanB, vanC1, vanC2, and vanH. Major bands of 81 kDa, 58 kDa, 33 kDa, 28 kDa were demonstrable in whole cell lysates by SDS-PAGE from all three isolates as well as reference strains. And especially,45 kDa protein was overproduced in Mu50 strains. Among them increased production of NAD$^{+}$-linked-$_{D}$-lactate dehydrogenase (dnLDH) were detected from one clinical strain (s135) and Mu5O strain. From these data, we suggest that the mechanism of vancomycin resistance in these isolates are distinct from that in enterococci.