Virulence Factors Found in Nasal Colonization and Infection of Methicillin-Resistant <i>Staphylococcus aureus</i> (MRSA) Isolates and Their Ability to Form a Biofilm
Thamiris Santana Machado,
Felipe Ramos Pinheiro,
Lialyz Soares Pereira Andre,
Renata Freire Alves Pereira,
Reginaldo Fernandes Correa,
Gabriela Coutinho de Mello,
Tainara Aparecida Nunes Ribeiro,
Bruno Penna,
Daniela Sachs,
Fábio Aguiar-Alves
Affiliations
Thamiris Santana Machado
Biotechnology and Molecular Epidemiology Laboratory, Fluminense Federal University, Niteroi, 24220-900 Rio de Jeneiro, Brazil
Felipe Ramos Pinheiro
Biotechnology and Molecular Epidemiology Laboratory, Fluminense Federal University, Niteroi, 24220-900 Rio de Jeneiro, Brazil
Lialyz Soares Pereira Andre
Biotechnology and Molecular Epidemiology Laboratory, Fluminense Federal University, Niteroi, 24220-900 Rio de Jeneiro, Brazil
Renata Freire Alves Pereira
Biotechnology and Molecular Epidemiology Laboratory, Fluminense Federal University, Niteroi, 24220-900 Rio de Jeneiro, Brazil
Reginaldo Fernandes Correa
Santa Martha Hospital, Department of Clinical Pathology, Niterói, 24241-265 Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Gabriela Coutinho de Mello
Biotechnology and Molecular Epidemiology Laboratory, Fluminense Federal University, Niteroi, 24220-900 Rio de Jeneiro, Brazil
Tainara Aparecida Nunes Ribeiro
Microbiological Testing Laboratory Associated with Materials and Drugs of the Center for Studies, Research and Innovation in Biofunctional Materials and Biotechnology, Federal University of Itajubá, 37500-903 Itajubá, Brazil
Bruno Penna
Applied Microbiology and Parasitology Postgraduate Program, Fluminense Federal University, Niteroi, 24220-900 Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Daniela Sachs
Microbiological Testing Laboratory Associated with Materials and Drugs of the Center for Studies, Research and Innovation in Biofunctional Materials and Biotechnology, Federal University of Itajubá, 37500-903 Itajubá, Brazil
Fábio Aguiar-Alves
Biotechnology and Molecular Epidemiology Laboratory, Fluminense Federal University, Niteroi, 24220-900 Rio de Jeneiro, Brazil
Hospitalizations related to Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) are frequent, increasing mortality and health costs. In this way, this study aimed to compare the genotypic and phenotypic characteristics of MRSA isolates that colonize and infect patients seen at two hospitals in the city of Niterói—Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. A total of 147 samples collected between March 2013 and December 2015 were phenotyped and genotyped to identify the protein A (SPA) gene, the mec staphylococcal chromosomal cassette (SCCmec), mecA, Panton-Valentine Leucocidin (PVL), icaC, icaR, ACME, and hla virulence genes. The strength of biofilm formation has also been exploited. The prevalence of SCCmec type IV (77.1%) was observed in the colonization group; however, in the invasive infection group, SCCmec type II was prevalent (62.9%). The Multilocus Sequence Typing (MLST), ST5/ST30, and ST5/ST239 analyses were the most frequent clones in colonization, and invasive infection isolates, respectively. Among the isolates selected to assess the ability to form a biofilm, 51.06% were classified as strong biofilm builders. Surprisingly, we observed that isolates other than the Brazilian Epidemic Clone (BEC) have appeared in Brazilian hospitals. The virulence profile has changed among these isolates since the ACME type I and II genes were also identified in this collection.
