Investigation of the presence of mecC and Panton-Valentine leukocidin genes in Staphylococcus aureus strains isolated from clinical specimens during seven years period

Abstract

Detection and identification of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in clinical microbiology laboratories are important for the selection of appropriate treatment and obtaining epidemiological data. mecC gene, is a mecA homologue, showing almost 69% DNA similarity with the mecA gene and the encoded protein by this gene shows almost 63% similarity with the PBP2a/2' protein. Several studies indicated that mecC positive MRSA strains can be transmitted from the livestock to humans by cross contamination. Panton-Valentine leukocidin (PVL), a potent cytotoxin of S.aureus is also considered as an important virulence factor. The aim of this study was to determine the existence and prevalence of mecC and pvl genes among S.aureus strains isolated from clinical specimens. A total of 1700 S.aureus isolates including 1177 methicillin-susceptible S.aureus (MSSA) and 523 MRSA, isolated in our hospital between January 2007 to December 2014, were included in the study. The isolates were identified by both conventional methods and BD Phoenix automated system (BD Diagnostic Instrument Systems, USA). Antibiotic susceptibility testing was performed by Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion method with oxacillin (1 μg) and cefoxitin (30 μg) according to the CLSI standards. The presence of mecA gene was investigated by the use of real-time PCR, and the presence of pvl and mecC genes were detected by conventional PCR method. Among the patients, 44.6% (759/1700) were outpatients, 65.8% (1119/1700) were male and the mean age of of patients was 39.7 years. Of 1700 isolates evaluated in this study, 523 (30.7%) were positive for mecA gene, however all of them were negative for mecC gene. A total of 32 (1.8%) isolates were positive for pvl gene including 23 (1.9%) out of 1177 MSSA and nine (1.7%) out of 523 MRSA strains. Eighteen (56.2%) of the PVL-positive S.aureus strains were isolated from skin and soft tissue infections. The frequency of PVL detected in this study was similar to the data of previous studies in our country. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study for the determination of the mecC in our country. Although the mecC gene positive S.aureus has not been detected in our study, it should be kept in mind that the regional epidemiological conditions can vary quickly. In conclusion, multicenter studies are needed for the screening of mecC gene including the animal isolates, in Turkey.