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Staphylococcus aureus is a gram-positive spherically shaped bacterium, a member of the Bacillota, and is a usual member of the microbiota of the body, frequently found in the upper respiratory tract and on the skin. It is often positive for catalase and nitrate reduction and is a facultative anaerobe, meaning that it can grow without oxygen. Although S. aureus usually acts as a commensal of the human microbiota, it can also become an opportunistic pathogen, being a common cause of skin infections including abscesses, respiratory infections such as sinusitis, and food poisoning. Pathogenic strains often promote infections by producing virulence factors such as potent protein toxins, and the expression of a cell-surface protein that binds and inactivates antibodies. S. aureus is one of the leading pathogens for deaths associated with antimicrobial resistance and the emergence of antibiotic-resistant strains, such as methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA). The bacterium is a worldwide problem in clinical medicine. Despite much research and development, no vaccine for S. aureus has been approved.
Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a group of gram-positive bacteria that are genetically distinct from other strains of Staphylococcus aureus. MRSA is responsible for several difficult-to-treat infections in humans. It caused more than 100,000 deaths worldwide attributable to antimicrobial resistance in 2019.
Methicillin (USAN), also known as meticillin (INN), is a narrow-spectrum β-lactam antibiotic of the penicillin class.
Vancomycin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (VRSA) are strains of Staphylococcus aureus that have acquired resistance to the glycopeptide antibiotic vancomycin. Bacteria can acquire resistant genes either by random mutation or through the transfer of DNA from one bacterium to another. Resistance genes interfere with the normal antibiotic function and allow bacteria to grow in the presence of the antibiotic. Resistance in VRSA is conferred by the plasmid-mediated vanA gene and operon. Although VRSA infections are uncommon, VRSA is often resistant to other types of antibiotics and a potential threat to public health because treatment options are limited. VRSA is resistant to many of the standard drugs used to treat S. aureus infections. Furthermore, resistance can be transferred from one bacterium to another.
Staphylococcus haemolyticus is a member of the coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS). It is part of the skin flora of humans, and its largest populations are usually found at the axillae, perineum, and inguinal areas. S. haemolyticus also colonizes primates and domestic animals. It is a well-known opportunistic pathogen, and is the second-most frequently isolated CoNS. Infections can be localized or systemic, and are often associated with the insertion of medical devices. The highly antibiotic-resistant phenotype and ability to form biofilms make S. haemolyticus a difficult pathogen to treat. Its most closely related species is Staphylococcus borealis.
Staphylococcus epidermidis is a Gram-positive bacterium, and one of over 40 species belonging to the genus Staphylococcus. It is part of the normal human microbiota, typically the skin microbiota, and less commonly the mucosal microbiota and also found in marine sponges. It is a facultative anaerobic bacteria. Although S. epidermidis is not usually pathogenic, patients with compromised immune systems are at risk of developing infection. These infections are generally hospital-acquired. S. epidermidis is a particular concern for people with catheters or other surgical implants because it is known to form biofilms that grow on these devices. Being part of the normal skin microbiota, S. epidermidis is a frequent contaminant of specimens sent to the diagnostic laboratory.
Panton–Valentine leukocidin (PVL) is a cytotoxin—one of the β-pore-forming toxins. The presence of PVL is associated with increased virulence of certain strains (isolates) of Staphylococcus aureus. It is present in the majority of community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) isolates studied and is the cause of necrotic lesions involving the skin or mucosa, including necrotic hemorrhagic pneumonia. PVL creates pores in the membranes of infected cells. PVL is produced from the genetic material of a bacteriophage that infects Staphylococcus aureus, making it more virulent.
Lysostaphin is a Staphylococcus simulans metalloendopeptidase. It can function as a bacteriocin (antimicrobial) against Staphylococcus aureus.
Phenol-soluble modulins (PSMs) are a family of small proteins, that carry out a variety of functions, including acting as toxins, assisting in biofilm formation, and colony spreading. PSMs are produced by Staphylococcus bacteria including Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), and Staphylococcus epidermidis. Many PSMs are encoded within the core genome and can play an important virulence factor. PSMs were first discovered in S. epidermidis by Seymour Klebanoff and via hot-phenol extraction and were described as a pro-inflammatory complex of three peptides. Since their initial discovery, numerous roles of PSMs have been identified. However, due in part to the small size of many PSMs, they have largely gone unnoticed until recent years.
ST8:USA300 is a strain of community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) that has emerged as a particularly antibiotic resistant epidemic that is responsible for rapidly progressive, fatal diseases including necrotizing pneumonia, severe sepsis and necrotizing fasciitis. The epidemiology of infections caused by MRSA is rapidly changing: in the past 10 years, infections caused by this organism have emerged in the community. The 2 MRSA clones in the United States most closely associated with community outbreaks, USA400 and USA300, often contain Panton-Valentine leukocidin (PVL) genes and, more frequently, have been associated with skin and soft tissue infections. Outbreaks of community-associated (CA)-MRSA infections have been reported in correctional facilities, among athletic teams, among military recruits, in newborn nurseries, and among sexually active men who have sex with men, CA-MRSA infections now appear to be endemic in many urban regions and cause most MRSA infections.
A staphylococcal infection or staph infection is an infection caused by members of the Staphylococcus genus of bacteria.
mecA is a gene found in bacterial cells which allows them to be resistant to antibiotics such as methicillin, penicillin and other penicillin-like antibiotics.
Staphylococcus is a genus of Gram-positive bacteria in the family Staphylococcaceae from the order Bacillales. Under the microscope, they appear spherical (cocci), and form in grape-like clusters. Staphylococcus species are facultative anaerobic organisms.
SCCmec, or staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec, is a mobile genetic element of Staphylococcus bacterial species. This genetic sequence includes the mecA gene coding for resistance to the antibiotic methicillin and is the only known way for Staphylococcus strains to spread the gene in the wild by horizontal gene transfer. SCCmec is a 21 to 60 kb long genetic element that confers broad-spectrum β-lactam resistance to MRSA. Moreover, additional genetic elements like Tn554, pT181, and pUB110 can be found in SCCmec, which have the capability to render resistance to various non-β-lactam drugs.
Staphylococcus pseudintermedius is a gram-positive spherically shaped bacterium of the genus Staphylococcus found worldwide. It is primarily a pathogen for domestic animals, but has been known to affect humans as well. S. pseudintermedius is an opportunistic pathogen that secretes immune-modulating virulence factors, has many adhesion factors, and the potential to create biofilms, all of which help to determine the pathogenicity of the bacterium. Diagnoses of S. pseudintermedius have traditionally been made using cytology, plating, and biochemical tests. More recently, molecular technologies like MALDI-TOF, DNA hybridization and PCR have become preferred over biochemical tests for their more rapid and accurate identifications. This includes the identification and diagnosis of antibiotic resistant strains.
CC398 or MRSA CC398 is a new variant of MRSA that has emerged in animals and is found in intensively reared production animals, where it can be transmitted to humans as LA-MRSA. A 2009 study shows, however, that dissemination of CC398 from exposed humans to other, non-exposed humans is infrequent. Though dangerous to humans, CC398 is often asymptomatic in food-producing animals. In a single study conducted in Denmark, MRSA was shown to originate in livestock and spread to humans, though the MRSA strain may have originated in humans and was transmitted to livestock.
Decolonization, also bacterial decolonization, is a medical intervention that attempts to rid a patient of an antimicrobial resistant pathogen, such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) or antifungal-resistant Candida.
Accessory gene regulator (agr) is a complex 5 gene locus that is a global regulator of virulence in Staphylococcus aureus. It encodes a two-component transcriptional quorum-sensing (QS) system activated by an autoinducing, thiolactone-containing cyclic peptide (AIP).
Kerry L. LaPlante is an American pharmacist, academic and researcher. She is the Dean at the University of Rhode Island College of Pharmacy. She is a Professor of Pharmacy and former department Chair of the Department of Pharmacy Practice at the University of Rhode Island, an adjunct professor of medicine at Brown University, an Infectious Diseases Pharmacotherapy Specialist, and the Director of the Rhode Island Infectious Diseases Fellowship and Research Programs at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Providence, Rhode Island.
MRSA ST398 is a specific strain of Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). Staphylococcus aureus is a gram-positive, spherical bacterium that can cause a range of infections in humans and animals. And Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a bacterium that is resistant to many antibiotics. The abbreviation "ST" in MRSA ST398 refers to the sequence type of the bacterium. MRSA ST398 is a clonal complex 398 (CC398). This means that the strain had emerged in a human clinic, without any obvious or understandable causes. MRSA ST398, a specific strain of MRSA, is commonly found in livestock, and can cause infections in humans who come into contact with infected animals.
References
- ↑ Otto, Michael (August 2013). "Community-associated MRSA: What makes them special?". International Journal of Medical Microbiology. 303 (6–7): 324–330. doi:10.1016/j.ijmm.2013.02.007. PMC 3729626 . PMID 23517691.
- ↑ Joshi, Gauri S.; Spontak, Jeffrey S.; Klapper, David G.; Richardson, Anthony R. (October 2011). "Arginine catabolic mobile element encoded speG abrogates the unique hypersensitivity of Staphylococcus aureus to exogenous polyamines". Molecular Microbiology. 82 (1): 9–20. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2958.2011.07809.x. PMC 3183340 . PMID 21902734.
- ↑ Barbier, F.; Lebeaux, D.; Hernandez, D.; Delannoy, A.-S.; Caro, V.; Francois, P.; Schrenzel, J.; Ruppe, E.; Gaillard, K.; Wolff, M.; Brisse, S.; Andremont, A.; Ruimy, R. (9 November 2010). "High prevalence of the arginine catabolic mobile element in carriage isolates of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus epidermidis". Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy. 66 (1): 29–36. doi: 10.1093/jac/dkq410 . PMID 21062794.
- ↑ Miragaia, Maria; de Lencastre, Herminia; Perdreau-Remington, Francoise; Chambers, Henry F.; Higashi, Julie; Sullam, Paul M.; Lin, Jessica; Wong, Kester I.; King, Katherine A.; Otto, Michael; Sensabaugh, George F.; Diep, Binh An; DeLeo, Frank R. (6 November 2009). "Genetic Diversity of Arginine Catabolic Mobile Element in Staphylococcus epidermidis". PLOS ONE. 4 (11): e7722. Bibcode:2009PLoSO...4.7722M. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0007722 . PMC 2768820 . PMID 19893740.
- ↑ Goering, R. V.; McDougal, L. K.; Fosheim, G. E.; Bonnstetter, K. K.; Wolter, D. J.; Tenover, F. C. (4 April 2007). "Epidemiologic Distribution of the Arginine Catabolic Mobile Element among Selected Methicillin-Resistant and Methicillin-Susceptible Staphylococcus aureus Isolates". Journal of Clinical Microbiology. 45 (6): 1981–1984. doi:10.1128/JCM.00273-07. PMC 1933090 . PMID 17409207.
- ↑ Planet, P. J.; LaRussa, S. J.; Dana, A.; Smith, H.; Xu, A.; Ryan, C.; Uhlemann, A.-C.; Boundy, S.; Goldberg, J.; Narechania, A.; Kulkarni, R.; Ratner, A. J.; Geoghegan, J. A.; Kolokotronis, S.-O.; Prince, A. (17 December 2013). "Emergence of the Epidemic Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Strain USA300 Coincides with Horizontal Transfer of the Arginine Catabolic Mobile Element and speG-mediated Adaptations for Survival on Skin". mBio. 4 (6): e00889-13–e00889-13. doi:10.1128/mBio.00889-13. PMC 3870260 . PMID 24345744.
- ↑ Diep, Binh An; Stone, Gregory G.; Basuino, Li; Graber, Christopher J.; Miller, Alita; Etages, Shelley-Ann des; Jones, Alison; Palazzolo-Ballance, Amy M.; Perdreau-Remington, Françoise; Sensabaugh, George F.; DeLeo, Frank R.; Chambers, Henry F. (June 2008). "The Arginine Catabolic Mobile Element and Staphylococcal Chromosomal Cassette Linkage: Convergence of Virulence and Resistance in the USA300 Clone of Methicillin-Resistant". The Journal of Infectious Diseases. 197 (11): 1523–1530. doi: 10.1086/587907 . PMID 18700257.
- ↑ Yan, Miling; Pamp, Sünje J.; Fukuyama, Julia; Hwang, Peter H.; Cho, Do-Yeon; Holmes, Susan; Relman, David A. (December 2013). "Nasal Microenvironments and Interspecific Interactions Influence Nasal Microbiota Complexity and S. aureus Carriage". Cell Host & Microbe. 14 (6): 631–640. doi:10.1016/j.chom.2013.11.005. PMC 3902146 . PMID 24331461.
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