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Virulence genes of bovine Staphylococcus aureus from persistent and nonpersistent intramammary infections with different clinical characteristics
Author(s) -
Haveri M.,
Roslöf A.,
Rantala L.,
Pyörälä S.
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
journal of applied microbiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.889
H-Index - 156
eISSN - 1365-2672
pISSN - 1364-5072
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2672.2007.03356.x
Subject(s) - staphylococcus aureus , microbiology and biotechnology , biology , mastitis , virulence , pulsed field gel electrophoresis , hemolysin , polymerase chain reaction , sccmec , penicillin , staphylococcal infections , gene , virology , genetics , methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus , antibiotics , bacteria , genotype
Aims: To screen putative virulence genes in Staphylococcus aureus causing persistent and nonpersistent bovine intramammary infections (IMI) with different clinical characteristics. To examine, whether a possible relationship exists between genetic profile and infection persistence, clinical signs of infection, clonal type determined by pulsed‐field gel electrophoresis (PFGE), and antimicrobial resistance. Methods and Results: One‐hundred and sixty‐one S. aureus isolates derived from bovine IMI, consisting of 17 different PFGE types, were screened by conventional and multiplex‐polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for 24 virulence genes for haemolysins ( hla‐hlg ), leukocidins ( lukED , lukM ), exfoliative toxins ( eta , etb ), enterotoxins ( sea‐seo , seu ), toxic‐shock syndrome toxin ( tst ), and genes encoding penicillin ( blaZ ) and methicillin resistance ( mecA ). The majority of S. aureus isolated at the onset of mastitis carried haemolysin genes (76·7–97·4%), lukED (96·6%), and at least one gene for pyrogenic toxin superantigen (PTSAg) (69·0%). Strains carrying PTSAg‐encoding genes were more common among predominant PFGE types and in persistent IMI. Strains concomitantly possessing sed , sej , and blaZ , putatively plasmid‐encoded, were typically found in connection with persistent IMI. Conclusions: Our results suggest that certain genetic elements are over‐representative in S. aureus isolates especially from persistent bovine mastitis. This phenomenon seems to be in connection with clonal type and is often concomitant with penicillin resistance. Significance and Impact of the Study: This is the first study to investigate associations between a large number of bacterial factors and outcome of S. aureus mastitis. The finding that widespread clonal types of S. aureus causing bovine mastitis of low treatment response may harbour characteristic genes could be improved for strain‐specific diagnostic purposes.