Characterization of Staphylococcus aureus coagulase type VII isolates from staphylococcal food poisoning outbreaks (1980-1995) in Tokyo, Japan, by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis.
Staphylococcus aureus coagulase type VII strains have been the strains most frequently isolated from staphylococcal food poisoning outbreaks in Tokyo, Japan. We applied pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) of chromosomal DNA digested with SmaI to characterize 129 coagulase type VII strains. These were isolated from 129 cases occurring in outbreaks in 35 districts during a 16-year period (1980-1995). The 129 outbreak strains were classified into three types, designated A (n = 115), B (n = 10), and C (n = 4). Types A and C were further divided into 33 (A1 to A33) and 4 (C1 to C4) subtypes, respectively. Strains of the same subtypes were isolated from food poisoning cases in the same districts at time intervals of 1 or 2 to 5 years. PFGE typing appears to be a useful method for subdividing strains of S. aureus coagulase type VII. A combination of coagulase typing and PFGE typing would provide more detailed information than the former method alone in epidemiologic investigations of staphylococcal food poisoning.
Shimizu
A
A
Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Agriculture, Kobe University, Nada-ku, Kobe-shi, Hyogo 657-0013, Japan. shimizua@kobe-u.ac.jp
Fujita
M
M
Igarashi
H
H
Takagi
M
M
Nagase
N
N
Sasaki
A
A
Kawano
J
J
D015373:Bacterial Typing Techniques; D001434:Bacteriophage Typing; D003030:Coagulase / Q000235:genetics*; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D004196:Disease Outbreaks; D016521:Electrophoresis, Gel, Pulsed-Field; D005517:Foodborne Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology; D006801:Humans; D013203:Staphylococcal Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000145:classification* / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics; D014041:Tokyo / Q000453:epidemiology
D003030:Coagulase; D004269:DNA, Bacterial