Three-year assessment of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus clones in Latin America from 1996 to 1998.
Four hundred ninety-nine methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) isolates recovered from 1996 to 1998 from 22 hospitals in five countries of Latin America-Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Uruguay and Mexico-were examined for antimicrobial susceptibility and clonal type in order to define the endemic clones in those hospitals. The hybridization of ClaI restriction digests with the mecA- and Tn554-specific DNA probes combined with pulsed-field gel electrophoresis of chromosomal SmaI digests (ClaI-mecA::ClaI-Tn554::PFGE clonal types) documented not only the predominance and persistence of the Brazilian clone (XI::B::B) in Brazil (97%) and Argentina (86%) but also its massive dissemination to Uruguay (100%). Moreover, a close relative of the Brazilian clone (XI::kappa::B) was highly represented in Chile (53%) together with a novel clone (47%) (II::E'::F) resistant to pencillin, oxacillin, ciprofloxacin, chloramphenicol, clindamycin, erythromycin, and gentamicin. A unique clonal type (I::NH::M) was detected in Mexico among pediatric isolates and was resistant to penicillin, oxacillin, and gentamicin only. This study clearly documented the very large capacity for geographic expansion and the persistence of the Brazilian clone, contributing not only to the increasing uniformity of the MRSA in South America but worldwide as well.
Aires De Sousa
M
M
Molecular Genetics Laboratory, Instituto de Tecnologia Química e Biológica da Universidade Nova de Lisboa (ITQB/UNL), Oeiras, Portugal.
Miragaia
M
M
Sanches
I S
IS
Avila
S
S
Adamson
I
I
Casagrande
S T
ST
Brandileone
M C
MC
Palacio
R
R
Dell'Acqua
L
L
Hortal
M
M
Camou
T
T
Rossi
A
A
Velazquez-Meza
M E
ME
Echaniz-Aviles
G
G
Solorzano-Santos
F
F
Heitmann
I
I
de Lencastre
H
H
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D004251:DNA Transposable Elements / Q000235:genetics; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000032:analysis; D015252:Deoxyribonucleases, Type II Site-Specific / Q000378:metabolism; D016521:Electrophoresis, Gel, Pulsed-Field; D006801:Humans; D007843:Latin America / Q000453:epidemiology; D016106:Methicillin Resistance / Q000235:genetics*; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D009693:Nucleic Acid Hybridization; D013203:Staphylococcal Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology*; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000145:classification* / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000235:genetics
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D004251:DNA Transposable Elements; D004269:DNA, Bacterial; C025651:CCCGGG-specific type II deoxyribonucleases; D015252:Deoxyribonucleases, Type II Site-Specific