Osong Public Health Res Perspect.  2017 Feb;8(1):47-53. 10.24171/j.phrp.2017.8.1.06.

Detection of Integrons and Staphylococcal Cassette Chromosome mec Types in Clinical Methicillin-resistant Coagulase Negative Staphylococci Strains

• Hajiahmadi F
• Ghale ES
• Alikhani M
• Mordadi A
• Arabestani MR

• KMID: 2386100
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.24171/j.phrp.2017.8.1.06

Abstract

OBJECTIVES
Integrons are thought to play an important role in the spread of antibiotic resistance. This study investigates class 1 and 2 integron-positive methicillin-resistant coagulase-negative staphylococci strains isolated in Iran and characterizes their patterns of antimicrobial resistance.
METHODS
Hundred clinical isolates of coagulase-negative staphylococci were characterized for integron content and staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec (SCCmec) type.
RESULTS
Sixteen isolates carried class 1 (intI1) integrons and four isolates carried class 2 (intI2) integrons. One resistance gene array was identified among the class 1 integrons (aadA1 cassette). The distribution of SCCmec types in 50 methicillin-resistant coagulase-negative staphylococci strains showed that SCCmec types III and V dominated among the tested strains.
CONCLUSION
This is the first report of methicillin-resistant coagulase-negative staphylococci strains that carry two mobile genetic elements, including class 1 and 2 integrons and SCCmec, in Iran.

Keyword

coagulase-negative staphylococci; integrons; staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec

MeSH Terms

Coagulase*
Drug Resistance, Microbial
Integrons*
Interspersed Repetitive Sequences
Iran
Methicillin Resistance*
Coagulase