title: Distribution of oral mucosal bacteria with mecA in patients undergoing hematopoietic cell transplantation.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  We recently reported frequent detection of antibiotic-resistant bacteria on the oral mucosa during the period of hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) and suggested an association between oral mucositis and antibiotic-resistant bacterial infection. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus spp. were frequently detected, and the oral cavity may be a reservoir of the gene mediating methicillin resistance, mecA. Here, we examined the frequency of mecA carriers in patients undergoing HCT.
  
  
  METHODS
  Fifty-nine patients (male (M) = 37, female (F) = 22, 47.3 ± 11.0 years) receiving HCT were enrolled in this study. Buccal swab samples were obtained four times from day -7 to day +20 (once/week), and mecA was detected by PCR. Fifty-two subjects without systemic disease, who completed dental treatment, especially periodontal treatment (M = 21, F = 31, 55.4 ± 14.2 years), were also enrolled as controls and checked for mecA on the oral mucosa.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Seventy-six percent (45/59) of the HCT patients carried mecA at least once in the study period (days -7 to +20), while no control subjects had mecA. The frequency of mecA carriers was 19.2 % from days -7 to -1, while it was significantly increased on days +7 to +13 and +14 to +20, with frequencies of 60.9 and 63.2 %, respectively (P < 0.01, ANOVA).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  mecA was detected in oral mucosa of patients undergoing HCT. The high detection frequency of staphylococci resistant to penicillin and beta-lactams in our recent report was supported.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathophysiology-Periodontal Science, Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Okayama, Japan.
authors.forename: Takayuki
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ebinuma
authors.forename: Yoshihiko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Soga
authors.forename: Takamaro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sato
authors.forename: Kazuyuki
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Matsunaga
authors.forename: Chieko
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Kudo
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Maeda
authors.forename: Yoshinobu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Maeda
authors.forename: Mitsune
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tanimoto
authors.forename: Shogo
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Takashiba
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000032:analysis; D005260:Female; D018380:Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D055624:Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification* / Q000378:metabolism; D008875:Middle Aged; D009061:Mouth Mucosa / Q000382:microbiology*; D046915:Penicillin-Binding Proteins; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D013203:Staphylococcal Infections / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000382:microbiology
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D046915:Penicillin-Binding Proteins; C487789:mecA protein, Staphylococcus aureus