The dominant methicillinaresistant Staphylococcus aureus clone from hospitals in Cape Town has an unusual genotype: ST612

• Published in: Clinical microbiology and infection Vol. 17; no. 5; pp. 785 - 792
• Main Authors: Jansen van Rensburg, MJ, Madikane, Eliya, Whitelaw, A, Chachage, M, Haffejee, S, Gay Elisha, B
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 01.05.2011
• Subjects: Drug resistance; Epidemiology; Genotypes; Hospitals; leukocidin; multilocus sequence typing; pandemics; Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis; Staphylococcus aureus
• ISSN: 1198-743X; 1469-0691
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1469-0691.2010.03373.x

There is currently limited information available on the molecular epidemiology of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in South Africa. A molecular characterization of 100 MRSA from five hospitals in Cape Town was carried out in this study. The strains were separated into six clusters by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis, indicating transmission of MRSA between local hospitals. None of the strains carried the Panton-Valentine Leukocidin gene. SCCmec typing, multilocus sequence typing and spa typing were used to further characterize the MRSA. Three clones corresponded to frequently described pandemic clones: ST239-MRSA-III, ST36-MRSA-II and ST5-MRSA-I. ST239-MRSA-III and ST36-MRSA-II were minor clones and collectively accounted for 16% of the isolates. ST5-MRSA-I was the second-most prevalent clone and accounted for 37% of the isolates. The dominant local clone was the infrequently described ST612-MRSA-IV (44% of isolates), which has only been described in South Africa and Australia.Original Abstract: Clin Microbiol Infect 2011; 17: 785-792