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Antibiotics
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The Molecular Epidemiology and Antimicrobial Resistance of MRSA
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The Molecular Epidemiology and Antimicrobial Resistance of MRSA

A special issue of Antibiotics (ISSN 2079-6382). This special issue belongs to the section "Mechanism and Evolution of Antibiotic Resistance".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 December 2024) | Viewed by 14261

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Jae-seok Kim

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
College of Medicine, Hallym University, Chuncheon, Korea
Interests: methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA); antimicrobial resistance; molecular epidemiology; genomic; novel targets of antibiotics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is one of the leading causes of healthcare-associated MRSA (HA-MRSA) infections, and its prevalence is increasing in community-associated MRSA (CA-MRSA) infections. MRSA is responsible for a variety of infections, ranging from simple skin and soft tissue infections to life-threatening bacteremia, pneumonia, and sepsis. Also of concern is the fact that MRSA exhibits resistance to nearly all β-lactams as well as to other antibiotic classes. This has serious implications for the treatment of severe infections with the potential to cause substantial mortality. Genomic analysis has revealed the distinct genetic origins, antimicrobial resistance determinants, and mobile genetic elements of several different MRSA clones and has also been used to monitor the spread of MRSA in healthcare and community settings. Hence, successful tracking of antibiotic resistance profile at the molecular level and knowledge of MRSA prevalence are important to direct treatment therapies.

This Special Issue aims to present up-to-date research on the molecular epidemiology and antibiotic resistance of MRSA clinical isolates. Original research articles or reviews addressing the molecular epidemiology, evolution, and spread of MRSA, as well as surveillance and antibiotic resistance in MRSA are welcome.

Prof. Dr. Jae-seok Kim
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Antibiotics is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Staphylococcus aureus
  • methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA)
  • hospital-associated MRSA (HA-MRSA)
  • antimicrobial resistance
  • molecular epidemiology
  • evolution of resistance
  • surveillance

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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13 pages, 505 KiB  
Article
Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus: The Shifting Landscape in the United Arab Emirates
by Syrine Boucherabine, Rania Nassar, Lobna Mohamed, Maya Habous, Anju Nabi, Riyaz Amirali Husain, Mubarak Alfaresi, Seema Oommen, Hamda Hassan Khansaheb, Mouza Al Sharhan, Handan Celiloglu, Mubarak Hussain Raja, Eman Abdelkarim, Nishi Ali, Salman Tausif, Victory Olowoyeye, Nelson Cruz Soares, Mahmood Hachim, Danesh Moradigaravand, Dean Everett, Elke Mueller, Stefan Monecke, Ralf Ehricht and Abiola Senokadd Show full author list remove Hide full author list
Antibiotics 2025, 14(1), 24; https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics14010024 - 2 Jan 2025
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1453
Abstract
Background: Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a significant burden globally, particularly in the Arabian Gulf region. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has experienced rising MRSA prevalence, with increasing diversity in the clonal complexes (CCs) identified. The COVID-19 pandemic, with its increased hospitalization rates [...] Read more.
Background: Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a significant burden globally, particularly in the Arabian Gulf region. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has experienced rising MRSA prevalence, with increasing diversity in the clonal complexes (CCs) identified. The COVID-19 pandemic, with its increased hospitalization rates and antibiotic use, may have further influenced MRSA’s genetic evolution and epidemiology in the country. Methods: To investigate this influence, genomic profiling of 310 MRSA clinical isolates collected between February and November 2022 was performed using a DNA microarray-based assay. Results: Isolates were assigned to 22 clonal complexes and 72 distinct strain assignments. The predominant clonal complexes were CC5, CC6, CC361, CC22, CC1, and CC8. Community-acquired MRSA lineages were dominant, with only one healthcare-associated MRSA lineage isolate identified. Upward trends of CC1153 were observed along with rare CCs, such as CC121-MRSA and CC7-MRSA, with the latter being reported for the first time in the Arabian Gulf region. The presence of pandemic strains USA300 CC8-MRSA-[IVa + ACME1] and CC8-MRSA-IV strains were also observed, including variants lacking Panton–Valentine leukocidin (pvl) genes and missing tst1 or enterotoxin genes. The PVL-negative CC772-MRSA-V/VT was identified, representing its first report in the UAE. A novel variant, CC361-MRSA-IV (tst1+/PVL+), was identified. Pvl genes were observed in 36% of the isolates, primarily from skin and soft tissue infections, while fusC (SCC-borne fusidic acid resistance) was identified in 13% of the isolates. Conclusions: The findings highlight the ongoing evolution of MRSA in the UAE, with the persistence and emergence of diverse and rare clonal complexes, driving the need for continuous genomic surveillance. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Molecular Epidemiology and Antimicrobial Resistance of MRSA)
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11 pages, 594 KiB  
Article
Molecular Characteristics and Prevalence of Rifampin Resistance in Staphylococcus aureus Isolates from Patients with Bacteremia in South Korea
by Yong Kyun Kim, Yewon Eom, Eunsil Kim, Euijin Chang, Seongman Bae, Jiwon Jung, Min Jae Kim, Yong Pil Chong, Sung-Han Kim, Sang-Ho Choi, Sang-Oh Lee and Yang Soo Kim
Antibiotics 2023, 12(10), 1511; https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics12101511 - 4 Oct 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1958
Abstract
Rifampin resistance (RIF-R) in Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) with rpoB mutations as one of its resistance mechanisms has raised concern about clinical treatment and infection prevention strategies. Data on the prevalence and molecular epidemiology of RIF-R S. aureus blood isolates in [...] Read more.
Rifampin resistance (RIF-R) in Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) with rpoB mutations as one of its resistance mechanisms has raised concern about clinical treatment and infection prevention strategies. Data on the prevalence and molecular epidemiology of RIF-R S. aureus blood isolates in South Korea are scarce. We used broth microdilution to investigate RIF-R prevalence and analyzed the rpoB gene mutation in 1615 S. aureus blood isolates (772 methicillin-susceptible and 843 methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA)) from patients with bacteremia, between 2008 and 2017. RIF-R prevalence and antimicrobial susceptibility were determined. Multilocus sequence typing was used to characterize the isolate’s molecular epidemiology; Staphylococcus protein A (spa), staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec (SCCmec), and rpoB gene mutations were detected by PCR. Among 52 RIF-R MRSA isolates out of 57 RIF-R S. aureus blood isolates (57/1615, 0.4%; 5 methicillin-susceptible and 52 MRSA), ST5 (44/52, 84.6%), SCCmec IIb (40/52, 76.9%), and spa t2460 (27/52, 51.9%) were predominant. rpoB gene mutations with amino acid substitutions showed that A477D (17/48, 35.4%) frequently conferred high-level RIF resistance (MIC > 128 mg/L), followed by H481Y (4/48, 8.3%). RIF-R S. aureus blood isolates in South Korea have unique molecular characteristics and are closely associated with rpoB gene mutations. RIF-R surveillance through S. aureus–blood isolate epidemiology could enable effective therapeutic management. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Molecular Epidemiology and Antimicrobial Resistance of MRSA)
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12 pages, 1571 KiB  
Article
Association of Antibacterial Susceptibility Profile with the Prevalence of Genes Encoding Efflux Proteins in the Bangladeshi Clinical Isolates of Staphylococcus aureus
by Tanjina Akter Suma, Nushrat Alam, Sheikh Zahir Raihan, Md. Al Zahid, Shankar Chandra Mandal, Fahrin Jahan Suchana, Ripa Kundu, Anwar Hossain and Md. Abdul Muhit
Antibiotics 2023, 12(2), 305; https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics12020305 - 2 Feb 2023
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2616
Abstract
Expelling antibiotic molecules out of the cell wall through multiple efflux pumps is one of the potential mechanisms of developing resistance against a wide number of antibiotics in Staphylococcus aureus. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between the [...] Read more.
Expelling antibiotic molecules out of the cell wall through multiple efflux pumps is one of the potential mechanisms of developing resistance against a wide number of antibiotics in Staphylococcus aureus. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between the antibiotic susceptibility profile and the prevalence of different efflux pump genes i.e., norA, norB, norC, mepA, sepA, mdeA, qacA/B, and smr in the clinical isolates of S. aureus. Sixty clinical isolates were collected from a tertiary level hospital in Bangladesh. The disc diffusion method using ten antibiotics of different classes was used to discern the susceptibility profile. polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was employed to observe the resistance patterns and to detect the presence of plasmid and chromosomal encoded genes. Among the clinical isolates, 60% (36 out of 60) of the samples were Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), whereas 55% (33 out of 60) of the bacterial samples were found to be multi-drug resistant. The bacteria showed higher resistance to vancomycin (73.33%), followed by ciprofloxacin (60%), cefixime (53.33%), azithromycin (43.33%), and amoxicillin (31.67%). The prevalence of the chromosomally-encoded efflux genes norA (91.67%), norB (90%), norC (93.33%), mepA (93.33%), sepA (98.33%), and mdeA (93.33%) were extremely high with a minor portion of them carrying the plasmid-encoded genes qacA/B (20%) and smr (8.33%). Several genetic combinations of efflux pump genes were revealed, among which norA + norB + norC + mepA + sepA + mdeA was the most widely distributed combination among MRSA and MSSA bacteria that conferred resistance against ciprofloxacin and probably vancomycin. Based on the present study, it is evident that the presence of multiple efflux genes potentiated the drug extrusion activity and may play a pivotal role in the development of multidrug resistance in S. aureus. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Molecular Epidemiology and Antimicrobial Resistance of MRSA)
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Review

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18 pages, 2800 KiB  
Review
Molecular Determinants of β-Lactam Resistance in Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA): An Updated Review
by Harshad Lade and Jae-Seok Kim
Antibiotics 2023, 12(9), 1362; https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics12091362 - 24 Aug 2023
Cited by 31 | Viewed by 7497
Abstract
The development of antibiotic resistance in Staphylococcus aureus, particularly in methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA), has become a significant health concern worldwide. The acquired mecA gene encodes penicillin-binding protein 2a (PBP2a), which takes over the activities of endogenous PBPs and, due to its [...] Read more.
The development of antibiotic resistance in Staphylococcus aureus, particularly in methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA), has become a significant health concern worldwide. The acquired mecA gene encodes penicillin-binding protein 2a (PBP2a), which takes over the activities of endogenous PBPs and, due to its low affinity for β-lactam antibiotics, is the main determinant of MRSA. In addition to PBP2a, other genetic factors that regulate cell wall synthesis, cell signaling pathways, and metabolism are required to develop high-level β-lactam resistance in MRSA. Although several genetic factors that modulate β-lactam resistance have been identified, it remains unclear how they alter PBP2a expression and affect antibiotic resistance. This review describes the molecular determinants of β-lactam resistance in MRSA, with a focus on recent developments in our understanding of the role of mecA-encoded PBP2a and on other genetic factors that modulate the level of β-lactam resistance. Understanding the molecular determinants of β-lactam resistance can aid in developing novel strategies to combat MRSA. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Molecular Epidemiology and Antimicrobial Resistance of MRSA)
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