title: Microsatellite Typing of Aspergillus flavus Strains in a Tunisian Onco-hematology Unit.
abstract: Aspergillus flavus is the most common species associated with invasive aspergillosis in Tunisia. The molecular epidemiology of the species is poorly documented. We used five highly discriminative microsatellite markers for the genotyping of clinical and hospital environmental A. flavus strains to assess whether IA could be hospital-acquired in the onco-hematology unit of the Farhat Hached teaching hospital of Sousse, Tunisia. The genotyping of 18 clinical isolates, collected from sputa of 17 acute leukemia patients, and 81 isolates, collected in these patients' hospital environment and food, identified 57 isolates that were grouped in 10 clones, each of them including 2-17 isolates. The remaining 42 isolates showed a unique genotype. Two main transmission scenarios were observed: (1) the same clone was isolated from different patients; (2) the same clone was isolated from a patient, its hospital environment and/or food. These findings strongly suggest the occurrence of hospital-acquired A. flavus infection/colonization in the investigated onco-hematology unit.
authors.affiliation: Service d'Hygiène Hospitalière, CHU Farhat Hached Sousse, 4000, Sousse, Tunisia. soukeina2gheith@yahoo.fr.|Unité de recherche UR 12SP31, Ministère de la Santé Publique, 1006, Tunis, Tunisia. soukeina2gheith@yahoo.fr.|Laboratoire de Parasitologie-Mycologie, CHU Farhat Hached, Rue Ibn Jazzar, 4000, Sousse, Tunisia. soukeina2gheith@yahoo.fr.
authors.forename: Soukeina
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Gheith
authors.affiliation: Unité de recherche UR 12SP31, Ministère de la Santé Publique, 1006, Tunis, Tunisia.
authors.forename: Fatma
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Saghrouni
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Parasitologie-Mycologie, CHU Timone-Adultes, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Marseille, 13005, Marseille, France.|IP-TPT UMR MD3, Aix-Marseille Université, 13885, Marseille, France.
authors.forename: Anne-Cécile
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Normand
authors.affiliation: Service d'Hygiène Hospitalière, CHU Farhat Hached Sousse, 4000, Sousse, Tunisia.
authors.forename: Wadiaa
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Bannour
authors.affiliation: Service d'Hématologie clinique, CHU Farhat Hached, 4000, Sousse, Tunisia.
authors.forename: Abderrahim
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Khelif
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Parasitologie-Mycologie, CHU Timone-Adultes, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Marseille, 13005, Marseille, France.|IP-TPT UMR MD3, Aix-Marseille Université, 13885, Marseille, France.
authors.forename: Renaud
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Piarroux
authors.affiliation: Unité de recherche UR 12SP31, Ministère de la Santé Publique, 1006, Tunis, Tunisia.
authors.forename: Moncef
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ben Said
authors.affiliation: Service d'Hygiène Hospitalière, CHU Farhat Hached Sousse, 4000, Sousse, Tunisia.|Unité de recherche UR 12SP31, Ministère de la Santé Publique, 1006, Tunis, Tunisia.
authors.forename: Mansour
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Njah
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Parasitologie-Mycologie, CHU Timone-Adultes, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Marseille, 13005, Marseille, France.|IP-TPT UMR MD3, Aix-Marseille Université, 13885, Marseille, France.
authors.forename: Stéphane
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ranque
mesh_terms: D001228:Aspergillosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology / Q000635:transmission; D001231:Aspergillus flavus / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D001483:Base Sequence; D003428:Cross Infection / Q000382:microbiology*; D005838:Genotype; D006757:Hospital Units; D006801:Humans; D018895:Microsatellite Repeats / Q000235:genetics*; D017720:Molecular Epidemiology; D058889:Molecular Typing / Q000379:methods*; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D019032:Spectrometry, Mass, Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption-Ionization; D014416:Tunisia / Q000453:epidemiology
keywords: Aspergillus flavus; Invasive aspergillosis; Microsatellite markers; Onco-hematology; Tunisia