Characterization of Staphylococcus pseudintermedius isolated from diseased dogs in Lithuania

Abstract

The aim of this study was to characterize Staphylococcus pseudintermedius for its antimicrobial resistance and virulence factors with a special focus on methicillin-resistant (MRSP) strains isolated from sick dogs in Lithuania. Clinically sick adult dogs suffering from infections (n=214) and bitches with reproductive disorders (n=36) from kennels were selected for the study. Samples (n=192) from the 250 tested (76.8%) dogs were positive for Staphylococcus spp. Molecular profiling using the species-specific nuc gene identified 51 isolates as S. pseudintermedius (26.6% from a total number of isolated staphylococci) of which 15 isolates were identified as MRSP. Ten MRSP isolates were isolated from bitches with reproductive disorders from two large breeding kennels. Data on susceptibility of S. pseudintermedius to different antimicrobials revealed that all isolates were susceptible to vancomycin, daptomycin and linezolid. Two isolates (3.9%) were resistant to rifampicin. A high resistance was seen towards penicillin G (94.1%), tetracycline (64.7%) and macrolides (68.7%). Resistance to fluoroquinolones ranged from 25.5% (gatifloxacin) to 31.4% (ciprofloxacin). The most prevalent genes encoding resistance included blaZ, aac(6')- mecA, and tet(M). The Luk-I gene encoding a leukotoxin was detected in 29% of the isolates, whereas the siet gene encoding exfoliative toxin was detected in 69% of the S. pseudintermedius isolates. This report of MRSP in companion animals represents a major challenge for veterinarians in terms of antibiotic therapy and is a concern for both animal and public health.

Virulence factors in coagulase-positive staphylococci of veterinary interest other than Staphylococcus aureus

“…In a later study (G omez-Sanz et al 2013), it was shown that all isolates of MSSP (n ¼ 16) also carried lukS/F-I. The Luk-I gene was detected in 29% isolates of S. pseudintermedius obtained from diseased dogs in Lithuania (Ruzauskas et al 2016) and in more than 90% isolates of clinical samples from domestic animals in Brazil (Pitchenin et al 2018).…”

“…From the results of both studies, it can be suggested that EXI, but not SIET, participates in canine epidermal splitting. SIET probably has a role in canine pyoderma and chronic otitis (Yoon et al 2010;Youn et al 2011;Bardiau et al 2013;Ruzauskas et al 2016). Almost all the isolates from otitis and dermatitis in domestic animals included in a recent study (Pitchenin et al 2018) produced SIET toxin and 24% of isolates produced EXI exfoliative toxin.…”

Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Pseudintermedius, a New Threat in Human and Veterinary Medicine?

“…Apart from dogs, MRSP can also be isolated from cats, less frequently from horses and humans (Devriese et al 2005, Dos Santos et al, 2016. Even though it is sometimes a part of normal genital fl ora of bitches, S. pseudintermedius can cause reproductive problems leading to neonatal mortality (Ruzauskas et al, 2016, Corro et al, 2018.…”

Staphylococcus pseudintermedius, both commensal and pathogen

“…However, according to the literature, it has also been isolated from cats, horses, donkeys, cattle, birds, rats and rarely from humans (41,43,85,110). Canine infections caused by S. pseudintermedius are mostly skin and ear infections, endometritis, cystitis, post-operative wound infections, urinary tract infections and respiratory tract infections (12,20,70,71,86,93,111).…”