Multiplex PCR for simultaneous detection of enterococcal genes vanA and vanB and staphylococcal genes mecA, ileS-2 and femB

Authors

  • Elena Ramos-Trujillo Laboratorio de Biología Molecular, Hospital Universitario Nuestra Señora de Candelaria, Unidad de Investigació n, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain
  • Eduardo Pérez-Roth Laboratorio de Biología Molecular, Hospital Universitario Nuestra Señora de Candelaria, Unidad de Investigació n, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain
  • Sebastián Méndez-Álvarez Departamento de Biología Celular y Microbiología, Universidad de la Laguna, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain
  • Félix Claverie-Martí Laboratorio de Biología Molecular, Hospital Universitario Nuestra Señora de Candelaria, Unidad de Investigació n, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain

Keywords:

Staphylococcus aureus, antibiotic resistance, glycopeptides, vancomycin-resistant S. aureus, methicillin-resistant S. aureus

Abstract

The experimental transfer of the vanA gene cluster from Enterococcus faecalis to Staphylococcus aureus has raised fears about the occurrence of such genetic transfer in clinical isolates of methicillin-resistant staphylococci. Recently, infections by a S. aureus strain carrying the enterococcal vancomycin resistance vanA gene cluster were reported. The possible emergence and dissemination of these strains is a serious health threat and makes optimization of prevention strategies and fast detection methods absolutely necessary. In the present study, we developed a PCR protocol for simultaneous detection of enterococcal vanA and vanB genes, the staphylococcal methicillin and mupirocin resistance markers mecA and ileS-2, and identification of S. aureus. As no vancomycin-resistant S. aureus isolates were available for our study, we used mixtures of enterococcal and staphylococcal colonies that harbored the different resistance markers to show that these genes could be detected simultaneously. This protocol could be used to facilitate the detection and identification of predictable S. aureus or methicillin-resistant strains carrying vanA or vanB.

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Published

2010-03-08

Issue

Section

Research Articles