Genetic Background and Antibiotic Resistance of Staphylococcus aureus Strains Isolated in the Republic of Georgia

Abstract

The genetic composition and antibiotic sensitivities of 50 clinical isolates of Staphylococcus aureus obtained from various clinics in the Republic of Georgia were characterized. S. aureus strains ATCC 700699 and ATCC 29737 were included as reference standards in all analyses. All 52 strains had identical 16S rRNA profiles. In contrast, pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) identified 20 distinct PFGE types among the 52 strains examined, which indicates that PFGE is more discriminating than is 16S rRNA sequence analysis for differentiating S. aureus strains. The results of our PFGE typing also suggest that multiple genetic subpopulations (related at the ca. 85% similarity level, based on their SmaI PFGE patterns) exist among the Georgian S. aureus strains. Twenty-two of the 50 Georgian strains were methicillin resistant and PCR positive for mecA, and 5 strains were methicillin sensitive even though they possessed mecA. None of the strains were vancomycin resistant or contained vanA. The nucleotide sequences of mecA fragments obtained from all mecA-containing strains were identical. Our data indicate that the population of S. aureus strains in Georgia is fairly homogeneous and that the prevalence of methicillin-resistant, mecA-positive strains is relatively high in that country.

Pulsed-Field Gel Electrophoretic Analysis and Some Characteristics ofStaphylococcus aureusIsolated from Retail Foods and Human Hands

“…16,17) Although it has been reported that there was no significant relationship between the PFGE banding pattern and SE type 18,19) or coagulase type, 20) Shimizu et al (2000) have reported that some specific types of PFGE were frequently found from the coagulase type VII strains. 15) Homogeneity among the mecA-positive strains was also apparent in the relationship between the PFGE banding pattern and mecA gene, [21][22][23][24][25] while heterogeneity among the mecA-positive strains was observed. 26,27) Although there have been many studies on PFGE concerning methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA), it remains unclear whether the PFGE banding pattern is related to such characteristics of S. aureus as the coagulase type and -lactamase activity.…”

“…There is also little information on the relationship between the PFGE banding pattern and some characteristics of S. aureus isolated from the environment surrounding certain foods. [21][22][23][24][25][26][27] The purpose of this present study is first to investigate whether there was a predominant S. aureus strain in retail foods and healthy human hands, and second to examine the relationship between the PFGE banding pattern and the S. aureus characteristics of SE type, coagulase type, and -lactamase activity.…”

“…There have been several studies reporting a relationship between the PFGE banding pattern and mecA gene. [21][22][23][24][25][26][27] In this respect, it has been reported that an identical or similar transferable plasmid having the mecA gene might be spread among S. aureus strains. 31) Although this plasmid may affect the PFGE banding pattern, it still remains unclear whether there is any relationship between the PFGE banding pattern andlactamase gene.…”

Molecular typing and cytotoxicity testing of Staphylococcus aureus isolated from milk, meat and clinical sources

“…The PFGE was used to further discriminate the isolates. As reported by Revazishvili et al, (2006), PFGE is more useful for short-term studying of S. aureus; and is considered the gold standard technique for MRSA typing because of its high discriminatory power, its reproducibility, and its good correlation with epidemiologically linked data (Tenover et al, 1994). The results of the PFGE typing showed some degree of genetic heterogeneity among the S. aureus strains from clinical and milk sources.…”

Antibacterial Potential of Cashew Apple (<i>Anacardium occidentale L</i>.) Juice Against Clinical Isolates of <i>Staphylococcus aureus</i> and <i>Streptococcus mutans</i>

“…aureus is a Gram positive opportunistic human pathogen. It is one of the most important bacteria isolated from Burn patients and is a common cause of community and hospital acquired infections involving skin infections and septicemia (Revazishvili et al, 2006;Hoerlle and Brandelli, 2009;Chakraborty et al, 2011). Multidrug resistant strains of S. aureus are being reported frequently from burn patients (Beheshti and Zia, 2011;Rajput et al, 2008;Chakraborty et al, 2011).…”