TY - JOUR
T1 - Multiple-locus variable-number tandem-repeat analysis of meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus discriminates within USA pulsed-field gel electrophoresis types
AU - Moser, S. A.
AU - Box, M. J.
AU - Patel, M.
AU - Amaya, M.
AU - Schelonka, R.
AU - Waites, K. B.
N1 - Funding Information:
Supported in part by GCRC grant MO1 RR-00032 from the National Center for Research Resources (M.A.) and a grant from the UAB Health Services Foundation Endowment fund (K.B.W.).
PY - 2009/4
Y1 - 2009/4
N2 - Many isolates of meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) are indistinguishable when compared using the standard pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) typing method. This may present a problem when investigating local outbreaks of MRSA transmission in a healthcare setting. It also impedes investigation of the widely disseminated community-acquired MRSA (USA 300-0114) in the inpatient setting, which is displacing other traditional hospital-acquired PFGE types. Combination of methods, including multiple-locus sequence typing (MLST), spa typing and staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec (SCCmec) typing, have been used with, or in place of, PFGE to characterise MRSA for epidemiological purposes. These methods are technically challenging, time-consuming and expensive and are rarely feasible except in large laboratories in tertiary care medical centres. Another method, which is simpler and with faster turnaround time, is multiple-locus variable-number tandem-repeat analysis (MLVA). We investigated the utility of MLVA to distinguish common PFGE types. The results suggest that MLVA can be used to identify unrelated strains with identical PFGE patterns or confirm close genetic composition of linked isolates. MLVA could potentially be used in conjunction with PFGE to validate relationships, but further prospective evaluation of these relationships will be required in order to define the proper role, if any, for use of this method in hospital epidemiology.
AB - Many isolates of meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) are indistinguishable when compared using the standard pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) typing method. This may present a problem when investigating local outbreaks of MRSA transmission in a healthcare setting. It also impedes investigation of the widely disseminated community-acquired MRSA (USA 300-0114) in the inpatient setting, which is displacing other traditional hospital-acquired PFGE types. Combination of methods, including multiple-locus sequence typing (MLST), spa typing and staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec (SCCmec) typing, have been used with, or in place of, PFGE to characterise MRSA for epidemiological purposes. These methods are technically challenging, time-consuming and expensive and are rarely feasible except in large laboratories in tertiary care medical centres. Another method, which is simpler and with faster turnaround time, is multiple-locus variable-number tandem-repeat analysis (MLVA). We investigated the utility of MLVA to distinguish common PFGE types. The results suggest that MLVA can be used to identify unrelated strains with identical PFGE patterns or confirm close genetic composition of linked isolates. MLVA could potentially be used in conjunction with PFGE to validate relationships, but further prospective evaluation of these relationships will be required in order to define the proper role, if any, for use of this method in hospital epidemiology.
KW - Meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus
KW - Multiple-locus variable-number tandem-repeat analysis
KW - Nosocomial infections
KW - Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis
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U2 - 10.1016/j.jhin.2008.12.011
DO - 10.1016/j.jhin.2008.12.011
M3 - Article
C2 - 19200620
AN - SCOPUS:61349181883
SN - 0195-6701
VL - 71
SP - 333
EP - 339
JO - Journal of Hospital Infection
JF - Journal of Hospital Infection
IS - 4
ER -