Evidence for a clonal origin of methicillin resistance in Staphylococcus aureus

Barry Kreiswirth; John Kornblum; Robert D. Arbeit; William Eisner; Joel N. Maslow; Allison McGeer; Donald E. Low; Richard P. Novick

doi:10.1126/science.8093647

Evidence for a clonal origin of methicillin resistance in Staphylococcus aureus

Barry Kreiswirth, John Kornblum, Robert D. Arbeit, William Eisner, Joel N. Maslow, Allison McGeer, Donald E. Low, Richard P. Novick

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

335 Scopus citations

Abstract

Soon after methicillin was introduced into clinical practice in the early 1960s, resistant strains of Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) appeared, bearing a newly acquired resistance gene, mecA, that encodes a penicillin binding protein, PBP2a. MRSA have spread throughout the world, and an investigation of the clonality of 472 isolates by DNA hybridization was performed. All 472 isolates could be divided into six temporally ordered mecA hybridization patterns, and three of these were subdivided by the chromomosomal transposon Tn554. Each Tn554 pattern occurred in association with one and only one mecA pattern, suggesting that mecA divergence preceded the acquisition of Tn554 in all cases and therefore that mecA may have been acquired just once by S. aureus.

Original language	English (US)
Pages (from-to)	227-230
Number of pages	4
Journal	Science
Volume	259
Issue number	5092
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1126/science.8093647
State	Published - 1993

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title = "Evidence for a clonal origin of methicillin resistance in Staphylococcus aureus",

abstract = "Soon after methicillin was introduced into clinical practice in the early 1960s, resistant strains of Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) appeared, bearing a newly acquired resistance gene, mecA, that encodes a penicillin binding protein, PBP2a. MRSA have spread throughout the world, and an investigation of the clonality of 472 isolates by DNA hybridization was performed. All 472 isolates could be divided into six temporally ordered mecA hybridization patterns, and three of these were subdivided by the chromomosomal transposon Tn554. Each Tn554 pattern occurred in association with one and only one mecA pattern, suggesting that mecA divergence preceded the acquisition of Tn554 in all cases and therefore that mecA may have been acquired just once by S. aureus.",

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T1 - Evidence for a clonal origin of methicillin resistance in Staphylococcus aureus

AU - Kreiswirth, Barry

AU - Kornblum, John

AU - Arbeit, Robert D.

AU - Eisner, William

AU - Maslow, Joel N.

AU - McGeer, Allison

AU - Low, Donald E.

AU - Novick, Richard P.

PY - 1993

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AB - Soon after methicillin was introduced into clinical practice in the early 1960s, resistant strains of Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) appeared, bearing a newly acquired resistance gene, mecA, that encodes a penicillin binding protein, PBP2a. MRSA have spread throughout the world, and an investigation of the clonality of 472 isolates by DNA hybridization was performed. All 472 isolates could be divided into six temporally ordered mecA hybridization patterns, and three of these were subdivided by the chromomosomal transposon Tn554. Each Tn554 pattern occurred in association with one and only one mecA pattern, suggesting that mecA divergence preceded the acquisition of Tn554 in all cases and therefore that mecA may have been acquired just once by S. aureus.

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Evidence for a clonal origin of methicillin resistance in Staphylococcus aureus

Abstract

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