A new study published by MRSA researchers from the University of Bath, the University of Texas, Texas A&M University and the UCD School of Biomolecular & Biomedical Science has highlighted the threat posed by the migration of a new, more toxic strain of the bacteria from the United States of America.
Typically, people in Ireland and the UK become infected with MRSA in a hospital environment, when they are already sick and have a reduced ability to fight the bacteria. In the last decade, the emergence of a new type of MRSA in the U.S.A. that is capable of infecting healthy people in the community has become a major problem.
The new research published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases explains why MRSA bacteria found in hospitals are not a problem in the community. The lead author on the study Dr. Ruth Massey from the University of Bath said: “Our research found that the composition of the cell wall of the bacteria is critical to the community acquired MRSA being more toxic and that hospital MRSA strains secrete fewer toxins than strains infecting healthy people in the community".
Dr. Jim O'Gara, Senior Lecturer from SBBS, a co-author on the paper added "using clinical isolates of MRSA from an Irish hospital, our experiments showed that antibiotic resistance has a negative impact on toxin production by hospital MRSA strains. The community MRSA strains are antibiotic resistant and more toxic than their hospital counterparts. Although community MRSA infections have not yet emerged as a significant public health issue in countries outside North America, this new study highlights the importance of research to understand and treat infections caused by these dangerous, and adaptable, pathogens."
Reference:
Rudkin JK, Edwards AM, Bowden MG, Brown EL, Pozzi C, Waters EM, Chan WC, Williams P, O'Gara JP, Massey RC, Methicillin Resistance Reduces the Virulence of Healthcare-Associated Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus by Interfering With the agr Quorum Sensing System J Infect Dis. jir845 first published online February 1, 2012 doi:10.1093/infdis/jir845
Link: Dr. Jim O’ Gara’s research profile
Image: Haemolytic activity of the community-associated MRSA strain USA300 on blood agar