title: Characteristics of community- and hospital-acquired meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus strains carrying SCCmec type IV isolated in Malaysia.
abstract: Community-acquired meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) occurring among hospital isolates in Malaysia has not been reported previously. As CA-MRSA reported worldwide has been shown to carry SCCmec types IV and V, the aim of this study was to determine the SCCmec types of MRSA strains collected in Malaysia from November 2006 to June 2008. From a total of 628 MRSA isolates, 20 were SCCmec type IV, whilst the rest were type III. Further characterization of SCCmec type IV strains revealed 11 sequence types (STs), including ST22, with the majority being ST30/Panton-Valentine leukocidin positive. Eight out of nine CA-MRSA were ST30, one was ST80, and all were sensitive to co-trimoxazole and gentamicin. Five new STs designated ST1284, ST1285, ST1286, ST1287 and ST1288 were discovered, suggesting the emergence of novel clones of MRSA circulating in Malaysian hospitals. The discovery of the ST22 strain is a cause for concern because of its ability to replace existing predominant clones in certain geographical regions.
authors.affiliation: Institute for Medical Research, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Norazah
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ahmad
authors.affiliation: Institute for Medical Research, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Izayu Nurfarha
authors.initials: IN
authors.lastname: Ruzan
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Mohamed Kamel
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Abd Ghani
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Sabah, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Azura
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hussin
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Selayang Hospital, Selangor, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Salbiah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nawi
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Kuala Lumpur Hospital, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Mohamad Nazri
authors.initials: MN
authors.lastname: Aziz
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Kota Bharu Hospital, Kelantan, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Nurahan
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Maning
authors.affiliation: International Medical University, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Victor Lim Kok
authors.initials: VLK
authors.lastname: Eow
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D015373:Bacterial Typing Techniques; D002648:Child; D017714:Community-Acquired Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology*; D003428:Cross Infection / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008296:Malaysia / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D055624:Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D008875:Middle Aged; D013203:Staphylococcal Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology*; D055815:Young Adult