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Molecular Characterization of Methicillin-Resistant Coagulase-Negative Staphylococci from a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2015

Isabel Bogado*
Affiliation:
Institute of Cellular and Molecular Biology of Rosario, School of Biochemistry and Pharmacy, National University of Rosario, Rosario, Argentia Department of Microbiology, School of Biochemistry and Pharmacy, National University of Rosario, Rosario, Argentia
Adriana Limansky
Affiliation:
Institute of Cellular and Molecular Biology of Rosario, School of Biochemistry and Pharmacy, National University of Rosario, Rosario, Argentia Department of Microbiology, School of Biochemistry and Pharmacy, National University of Rosario, Rosario, Argentia
Emma Sutich
Affiliation:
Department of Microbiology, School of Biochemistry and Pharmacy, National University of Rosario, Rosario, Argentia
Patricia Marchiaro
Affiliation:
Department of Microbiology, School of Biochemistry and Pharmacy, National University of Rosario, Rosario, Argentia
Marta Marzi
Affiliation:
Department of Microbiology, School of Biochemistry and Pharmacy, National University of Rosario, Rosario, Argentia
Juan Putero
Affiliation:
Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Hospital Centenario, Rosario, Argentia
Alejandro Viale
Affiliation:
Institute of Cellular and Molecular Biology of Rosario, School of Biochemistry and Pharmacy, National University of Rosario, Rosario, Argentia Department of Microbiology, School of Biochemistry and Pharmacy, National University of Rosario, Rosario, Argentia
*
Cátedra de Microbiología Clínica I, Facultad de Cs. Bioquímicas y Farmacéuticas, Universidad Nacional de Rosario, Suipacha 531-2000 Rosario, República Argentina

Abstract

Objective:

To evaluate clonal dissemination of methicillin-resistant coagulase-negative staphylococci (CNS).

Setting:

Neonatal intensive care unit of a 180-bed, university-affiliated general hospital.

Patients:

Neonates admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit between March 1999 and October 2000, from whom CNS were isolated as a unique pathogen. Patients from other wards from whom epidemiologically unrelated staphylococci strains were obtained served as control-patients.

Methods:

Conventional methods were used for phenotypic characterization of CNS. Methicillin resistance was determined by mecA polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification. Genotypic characterization was done by random amplification of DNA with degenerated primers (RAPD) and repetitive element sequence-based PCR (rep-PCR).

Results:

Forty methicillin-resistant CNS isolates obtained from neonates were characterized as Staphylococcus epidermidis (33), S. hominis (5), S. warneri (1), and S. auricularis (1). Both RAPD and rep-PCR indicated the presence of 4 different clones among the 33 S. epidermidis isolates. In turn, the 4 randomly selected, epidemiologically unrelated methicillin-resistant CNS strains obtained from control-patients showed 3 new profiles by RAPD and 2 by rep-PCR, which differed from the corresponding patterns mentioned earlier. Persistence of S. hominis in a neonate could be assessed by both genotypic techniques.

Conclusions:

The molecular characterization of the methicillin-resistant CNS studied indicated dissemination of one particular methicillin-resistant CNS clone among the neonates in the ward studied. Although RAPD showed a superior power to discriminate among methicillin-resistant CNS isolates, both RAPD and rep-PCR detected intraspecific and interspecific genomic diversity.

Type
Original Articles
Copyright
Copyright © The Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America 2002

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