Skip Navigation



JAC Advance Access published online on March 21, 2006
Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy, doi:10.1093/jac/dkl071
This Article
Right arrow FREE Full Text (PDF) Freely available
Right arrow All Versions of this Article:
57/5/855    most recent
dkl071v1
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My Personal Archive
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowRequest Permissions
Right arrow Disclaimer
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by de Araujo, G. L.
Right arrow Articles by Teixeira, L. A.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by de Araujo, G. L.
Right arrow Articles by Teixeira, L. A.
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us  
What's this?

© The Author 2006. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the British Society for Antimicrobial Chemotherapy. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org
Received December 20, 2005
Revised February 9, 2006
Accepted February 14, 2006

Original article

Commensal isolates of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus epidermidis are also well equipped to produce biofilm on polystyrene surfaces

Gabrielle Luck de Araujo 1, Leonardo Rocchetto Coelho 2, Camila Barbosa de Carvalho 1, Rafael Muniz Maciel 1, Amada Zambrana Coronado 2, Ronaldo Rozenbaum 3, Bernadete Teixeira Ferreira-Carvalho 2, Agnes Marie Sá Figueiredo 2 *, and Lenise Arneiro Teixeira 1

1 Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Niterói, 24241002 RJ, Brazil
2 Departamento de Microbiologia Médica, Instituto de Microbiologia Prof Paulo de Góes, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Centro de Ciências da Saúde, Bloco I, Cidade Universitária, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, 21941590, Brazil
3 Hospital Samaritano, Rio de Janeiro, 22041010 RJ, Brazil

* To whom correspondence should be addressed.
Agnes Marie Sá Figueiredo, E-mail: agnes{at}micro.ufrj.br


  Abstract

Objectives: To study biofilm production and to detect icaAD, atlE and aap genes in 137 isolates of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus epidermidis (MRSE) obtained from healthy individuals from the community (35 isolates), from hospitalized patients at the Antônio Pedro University Hospital (25 isolates) and from individuals from a home-care system (HCS; 77 isolates).

Methods: Biofilm production was determined in vitro using polystyrene inert surfaces. icaAD, atlE and aap genes were detected using PCR. Hybridization experiments were also carried out to confirm some PCR results. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing was carried out using the NCCLS methods.

Results: Although many of the commensal MRSE isolates produced biofilms, the percentage of biofilm producers was significantly higher (P = 0.0107) among hospital isolates (76%) than among isolates from the community (60%) and from the HCS (57%). An association was observed between multiresistance and biofilm production for isolates obtained from healthy individuals from the community and from household contacts from the HCS (P < 0.0001). The concomitant presence of the ica operon and atlE and aap genes was associated with the strong biofilm-producer phenotype (P < 0.0001).

Conclusion: Because many of the commensal MRSE isolates obtained from nares produced biofilms and carried icaAD, aap and atlE genes, biofilms or such genetic elements should not be used as markers for clinical significance. The biofilm environment seems to increase genetic exchanges and hence may contribute to multiresistance phenotypes.

Keywords: MRSE; biofilm; ica; aap and atlE.
Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us    What's this?




Disclaimer: Please note that abstracts for content published before 1996 were created through digital scanning and may therefore not exactly replicate the text of the original print issues. All efforts have been made to ensure accuracy, but the Publisher will not be held responsible for any remaining inaccuracies. If you require any further clarification, please contact our Customer Services Department.