Identification of Virulence Genes in Staphylococcus aureus Isolates Segregated from Children’s Wounds

Staphylococcus aureus is an opportunistic pathogenic bacterium that can provide invasive conditions by secreting various toxins. It is involved in the development of skin infections, such as swollen and ulcers. Today, one of the main problems is the treatment of Staphylococcus aureus resistant strains. The aim of the current study was to detect virulence factors and antibiotic resistance among strains isolated from wound infections of children who referred to Tehran Children’s Medical Hospital in 1396-97. A total of 59 strains of Staphylococcus aureus isolated from wound infection were collected during one year. Staphylococcus aureus was detected using biochemical tests. For antibiotic susceptibility test, antibiotic disks (Mast، UK) were used according to the CLSI 2017. For detection of virulance genes, including nuc، mecA، tsst-1، hla، hlb، hld، eta، etb، etc, PCR method was used. Vancomycin and linezolid were sensitives for all isolates and the highest resistance antibiotic was penicillin with 98.3%. The frequency distribution of genes s mecA، tsst-1، hla، hlb، hld، eta، etb، and etd were 59.3%, 37.7%, 71.2%, 57.6%, 96.6%, 100%, 11.9%, 27.1%, respectively. All isolates were sensitive to vancomycin and linezolid, and these antibiotics were the best choices for the first line of treatment for staphylococcus aureus strains. Since all isolates of Staphylococcus aureus were obtained from children wound infections and all of them contained oxfolitic A gene, control and disinfection measures seem to be important among children, because these strains have the potential to spread this gene among hospitalized patients.