Premium
Risk of colonization or gene transfer to owners of dogs with meticillin‐resistant Staphylococcus pseudintermedius
Author(s) -
Frank Linda A.,
Kania Stephen A.,
Kirzeder Elizabeth M.,
Eberlein Laura C.,
Bemis David A.
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
veterinary dermatology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.744
H-Index - 60
eISSN - 1365-3164
pISSN - 0959-4493
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-3164.2009.00826.x
Subject(s) - staphylococcus pseudintermedius , sccmec , microbiology and biotechnology , meticillin , staphylococcus , staphylococcus aureus , biology , coagulase , antibiotic resistance , staphylococcal infections , antibiotics , multiplex polymerase chain reaction , staphylococcus haemolyticus , antimicrobial , micrococcaceae , antibacterial agent , methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus , gene , polymerase chain reaction , bacteria , genetics
Abstract To determine the zoonotic risk from meticillin‐resistant staphylococcal species or transfer of resistance genes between dogs with pyoderma and their owners, 25 dog–owner pairs were studied. Cultures were obtained from the dog’s lesions and the owner’s nasal cavity on the initial visit. Staphylococcus isolates were identified and antimicrobial susceptibility tests were performed by the Kirby‐Bauer disk diffusion method. Presence of the mecA gene was determined by PCR. Staphylococcal Cassette Chromosome (SCC mec ) typing was performed by multiplex PCR. Eighteen dogs had a meticillin‐resistant staphylococcal species, with meticillin‐resistant S. pseudintermedius (MRSP) isolated from 15 dogs. MRSP was isolated from two owners of dogs with MRSP skin infections. Both organisms had the same susceptibility pattern and SCC mec type. MRSP was not isolated from the owners after treating both dogs for 1 month. At least one coagulase‐negative Staphylococcus spp. (CoNS) was isolated from each owner, with meticillin resistance found in 16 (64%) of the isolates. The mecA gene was identified in all but two of the meticillin‐resistant Staphylococcus spp. Multiplex PCR identified SCC mec type V in all MRSP. The mecA gene‐possessing CoNS isolates from owners contained either SCC mec type IVa or IVc. In conclusion, MRSP colonization of owners appeared to be uncommon and transient. Human nasal carriage of meticillin‐resistant CoNS was common, but the SCC mec types were different from those in the canine MRSP isolates. Owners do not appear to be at great risk of zoonotic transfer of organisms or antimicrobial resistance genes from dogs with MRSP infections, but the findings should be confirmed with a much larger cohort.