title: Transmission of MRSA CC398 strains between pig farms related by trade of animals.
abstract: Meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) clonal complex (CC) 398 is a genetic lineage associated with livestock, especially pigs. The authors investigated the role of pig trade in the transmission of MRSA CC398 between farms using pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE), a highly discriminatory method for strain typing. PFGE analysis of 58 MRSA isolates from a retrospective study in the Netherlands and a prospective study in Denmark provided molecular evidence that the strains present in five of the eight recipient farms were indistinguishable from those occurring in the corresponding supplying farm. The molecular typing data confirm the findings of a previous risk-analysis study indicating that trading of colonised pigs is a vehicle for transmission of MRSA CC398.
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Disease Biology, University of Copenhagen, Frederiksberg C, Denmark. ceg@life.ku.dk
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Espinosa-Gongora
authors.forename: E M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Broens
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Moodley
authors.forename: J P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Nielsen
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Guardabassi
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003132:Commerce; D003718:Denmark / Q000453:epidemiology; D016521:Electrophoresis, Gel, Pulsed-Field / Q000662:veterinary; D055624:Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D009426:Netherlands / Q000453:epidemiology; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013203:Staphylococcal Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000635:transmission / Q000662:veterinary*; D013552:Swine; D013553:Swine Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology / Q000635:transmission*