In:
mBio, American Society for Microbiology, Vol. 4, No. 6 ( 2013-12-31)
Abstract:
Over the past 15 years, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) has become a major public health problem. It is likely that adaptations in specific MRSA lineages (e.g., USA300) drove the spread of MRSA across the United States and allowed it to replace other, less-virulent S. aureus strains. We suggest that one major factor in the evolutionary success of MRSA may have been the acquisition of a gene ( speG ) that allows S. aureus to evade the toxicity of polyamines (e.g., spermidine and spermine) that are produced in human skin. Polyamine tolerance likely gave MRSA multiple fitness advantages, including the formation of more-robust biofilms, increased adherence to host tissues, and resistance to antibiotics and killing by human skin cells.
Type of Medium:
Online Resource
ISSN:
2161-2129
,
2150-7511
DOI:
10.1128/mBio.00889-13
Language:
English
Publisher:
American Society for Microbiology
Publication Date:
2013
detail.hit.zdb_id:
2557172-2
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