title: Molecular characterization of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus isolated from a Brazilian university hospital.
abstract: The aim of this study was to perform SCCmec typing in Staphylococcus aureus isolates and to characterize the clonal profile of these isolates. Forty-six mecA gene-positive strains isolated between 2002 and 2006 were submitted to antimicrobial resistance testing by the E-test, SCCmec typing by multiplex PCR, and clonal profile analysis by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis. Forty-one (89.1%) isolates were typed as SCCmec III and five (10.9%) as SCCmec IV. Four circulating clones were detected, one of them comprising isolates related to the Brazilian epidemic clone. This clone was detected throughout the study period. The SCCmec III isolates were associated with a high rate of multidrug resistance and clonal dissemination of methicillin-resistant S. aureus in the wards of the University Hospital of the Botucatu School of Medicine, Universidade Estadual Paulista.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Biosciences Institute, UNESP - Univ Estadual Paulista, São Paulo, Brazil; Department of Tropical Diseases and Imaging Diagnosis, Botucatu School of Medicine, UNESP - Univ Estadual Paulista, São Paulo, Brazil.
authors.forename: André
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Martins
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Biosciences Institute, UNESP - Univ Estadual Paulista, São Paulo, Brazil.
authors.forename: Danilo Flávio Moraes
authors.initials: DF
authors.lastname: Riboli
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Biosciences Institute, UNESP - Univ Estadual Paulista, São Paulo, Brazil.
authors.forename: Valéria Cataneli
authors.initials: VC
authors.lastname: Pereira
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Biosciences Institute, UNESP - Univ Estadual Paulista, São Paulo, Brazil. Electronic address: cunhamlr@ibb.unesp.br.
authors.forename: Maria de Lourdes Ribeiro de Souza da
authors.initials: Mde L
authors.lastname: Cunha
mesh_terms: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D001938:Brazil; D006785:Hospitals, University; D006801:Humans; D055624:Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D060885:Multiplex Polymerase Chain Reaction; D046915:Penicillin-Binding Proteins
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D046915:Penicillin-Binding Proteins; C487789:mecA protein, Staphylococcus aureus
keywords: BEC; MRSA; SCCmec; Staphylococcus aureus