Characteristics of Staphylococcus petrasii, a recently described coagulase-negative species from human clinical specimens
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| Year of publication | 2014 |
| Type | Conference abstract |
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| Description | Coagulase-negative staphylococci are ubiquitous organisms that were recognized as opportunistic human pathogens. Among them is a recently described species Staphylococcus petrasii, from which two subspecies, subsp. petrasii and subsp. croceilyticus, have been described so far. In this study, we summarize existing data about the occurrence, identification and significance of S. petrasii in human clinical materials. Twenty-six S. petrasii strains were isolated from clinical specimens in the Czech Republic and in the USA between 2006 and 2014. They were retrieved mainly from blood, pus of wounds, and ear swab samples from either young children or older patients with various diagnoses. Isolates were characterized and identified using extensive biotyping and molecular methods. Biotyping classified 20 strains as subsp. petrasii and six strains as subsp. croceilyticus. Genetic analysis based on rep-PCR and automated ribotyping revealed subspecies-specific clusters corresponding to both S. petrasii subspecies and distinguished them from other Staphylococcus spp. SmaI macrorestriction pattern analysis clearly differentiated both S. petrasii subspecies and proved to be a suitable method for typing of these strains. Analysis of 12 antibiotic-resistant strains showed that they all contained at least two plasmids with size ranging from 1 to 27 kb. Streptomycin, tetracycline and erythromycin plasmid-borne resistance genes were detected by PCR. Some plasmids were similar to those of Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus haemolyticus, thus suggesting their horizontal transfer. Presented results emphasize the clinical significance of S. petrasii and the necessity for identification and monitoring of its strains. |
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