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Journal of Clinical Microbiology, February 1999, p. 342-349, Vol. 37, No. 2
Laboratory of Medical Microbiology,
Received 28 April 1998/Returned for modification 12 June
1998/Accepted 2 November 1998
Repetitive sequence-based (Rep)-PCR genotyping as described here is
based on the presence of homologues of Mycoplasma
pneumoniae repeat-like elements in Staphylococcus. In
this study we comparatively evaluated the usefulness of rep-PCR typing
with two sets of well-defined collections of Staphylococcus
aureus strains. Rep-PCR analysis of the first collection of
S. aureus strains (n = 59) and one Staphylococcus intermedius strain showed 14 different
rep-PCR patterns, with each pattern harboring 6 to 15 DNA fragments.
The discriminatory power of rep-PCR typing compared well to those of
arbitrarily primed PCR (average of 20 types) and pulsed-field gel
electrophoresis (11 types). S. aureus strain collection I comprised four outbreak-related groups of isolates. The isolates in
only one group were found to have identical rep-PCR profiles. However,
in an analysis of isolates from three additional independent local
outbreaks (n for outbreaks 1 and 2 = 5, n
for outbreak 3 = 12), identical rep-PCR types were found among
strains isolated during each outbreak. Therefore, we conclude that
rep-PCR genotyping may be an easy and fast method for monitoring of the
epidemiology of nosocomial Staphylococcus infections.
Rep-PCR analysis of strain collection II, which consisted of epidemic
and nonepidemic methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA)
strains, revealed that a cluster of similar rep-PCR profiles was found
among MRSA isolates which were more frequently isolated and which were
most often associated with outbreaks.
0095-1137/99/$04.00+0
Copyright © 1999, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.
Molecular Genotyping of Staphylococcus
aureus Strains: Comparison of Repetitive Element
Sequence-Based PCR with Various Typing Methods and Isolation of
a Novel Epidemicity Marker
*
Corresponding author. Mailing address: Laboratory of
Medical Microbiology, St. Elisabeth Hospital, P.O. Box 747, 5000 AS
Tilburg, The Netherlands. Phone: 31 13 539 2676. Fax: 31 13 544 1264. E-mail: lab.med.microbiol{at}inter.NL.net.
Journal of Clinical Microbiology, February 1999, p. 342-349, Vol. 37, No. 2
0095-1137/99/$04.00+0
Copyright © 1999, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.
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