Potential Role of Staphylococcus cohnii in a Hospital Environment

Partial rpoB Gene Sequencing Identification and Probiotic Potential of Floricoccus penangensis ML061-4 Isolated from Assam Tea (Camellia sinensis var. assamica)

Assam tea or Miang is a local name of Camellia sinensis var. assamica in northern Thailand. By the local wisdom, Assam tea leaves are used as the raw material in tea fermentation to produce “Fermented Miang” consumed by people in northern Thailand and the countries nearby. In this study, twenty-eight bacterial isolates were obtained from Assam tea leaf samples collected from Nan province, Thailand. Bacterial isolates were identified within 6 genera including Bacillus, Floricoccus, Kocuria, Lysinibacillus, Micrococcus and Staphylococcus. Among these, the strain ML061-4 shared 100.0 and 99.4% similarity of 16S rRNA and rpoB gene sequence with F. penangensis JCM 31735^T, respectively. This is the first discovery of F. penangensis in Thailand. F. penangensis ML061-4 exhibited probiotic characteristics including lactic acid production (9.19 ± 0.10 mg/ml), antibacterial activities (Escherichia coli ATCC 25922 and E. coli O157:H7 DMST 12743), acid and bile salt tolerance (71.1 and 54.9%, respectively), autoaggregation (97.0%), coaggregation (66.0% with E. coli O157:H7), cell surface hydrophobicity (90.0%), bacterial adhesion (82.9% with Lactobacillus plantarum FM03-1), competitive inhibition (17.8% with E. coli O157:H7) and competitive exclusion (34.9% with E. coli O157:H7). Overall, the data suggested that F. penangensis ML061-4 had a great potential to be a probiotic.

Zoonotic multidrug-resistant microorganisms among small companion animals in Germany

Antimicrobial multidrug-resistant microorganisms (MDRO) can be transmitted between companion animals and their human owners. Aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of extended spectrum beta-lactamase-producing Enterobacteriaceae (ESBL-E) and Staphylococcus aureus including methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) in different companion animal species. Dogs (n = 192), cats (n = 74), and rabbits (n = 17), treated in a veterinary practice and hospital or living in an animal shelter and private households, were sampled. All facilities were located in a region characterized by a high density of pig production. Nasal, buccal and perianal swabs were enriched and cultured on solid chromogenic selective media. A subgroup of 20 animals (13 dogs, 3 cats, 4 rabbits) was analyzed for the presence of staphylococci other than S. aureus. Amongst all animals (n = 283), twenty dogs (10.4%) and six cats (8.1%) carried S. aureus. MRSA was found in five dogs (2.6%) and two cats (2.7%). Isolates were of spa types t011, t034, t108 (all mecA-positive, ST398), and t843 (mecC-positive, ST130), typical for livestock-associated (LA)-MRSA. Except for one dog, MRSA-positive animals did not have direct contact to husbandry. ESBL-Escherichia coli (bla_CTX-M/bla_TEM/bla_SHV genes) were present in seven dogs (3.6%), one cat (1.4%) possessed a cefotaxime-resistant Citrobacter freundii isolate (bla_TEM/bla_CMY-2 genes). MDRO carriage was associated with animals from veterinary medical settings (p<0.05). One dog and one rabbit carried methicillin-resistant coagulase-negative staphylococci. The exclusive occurrence of MRSA lineages typically described for livestock stresses the impact of MDRO strain dissemination across species barriers in regional settings. Presence of ESBL-E and LA-MRSA among pets and probable dissemination in clinical settings support the necessity of a “One Health” approach to address the potential threats due to MDRO-carrying companion animals.

Staphylococcus cohnii hemolysins - isolation, purification and properties

A total 355 of Staphylococcus cohnii isolates from hospital environment, patients (newborns), medical staff and from non-hospital environment were tested for hemolytic activity. Ninety-one % of S. cohnii ssp. cohnii and 74.5 % S. cohnii ssp. urealyticus strains exhibited hemolysis synergistic to S. aureus ATCC 25923 strain. Crude preparations of hemolysins of both bacterial subspecies presented delta-hemolysin, but not alpha- and beta-toxin activity. Highly pure hemolysins were obtained by semipreparative SDS-PAGE or by organic solvent extraction from the freeze-dried crude preparations. Native-PAGE and 2D-PAGE showed their high heterogeneity. Molar masses of single hemolysin units estimated by the Tris-Tricine-SDS-PAGE were calculated as 3.47 kDa for S. cohnii ssp. cohnii and 3.53 kDa for S. cohnii ssp. urealyticus.

Plasmids ofStaphylococcus cohnii isolated from the intensive-care unit

Numerous isolates of both subspecies of Staphylococcus cohnii were found in the environment of the intensive-care unit of a pediatric hospital. These isolates carried in their cells many plasmids, up to fourteen, of a wide range of sizes (< 2 to > 56 kb). Striking was the occurrence of large plasmids not very common in staphylococci. These were present in > 80% of S. cohnii isolates. Fifty-two different plasmid profiles were found in 79 investigated isolates belonging to S. cohnii ssp. cohnii and S. cohnii ssp. urealyticus. Isolates similar in plasmid profiles were grouped in antibiotic-resistance clusters established for 9 antibiotics (gentamicin, ciprofloxacin, clindamycin, erythromycin, tetracycline, chloramphenicol, mupirocin, trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, vancomycin) using the method of unweighted pair group mathematical averages (UPGMA). Many isolates were multiresistant to antibiotics and produced bacteriocins.