Molecular and Virulence Characteristics of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Bacteria Recovered From Hospital Cockroaches

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is the most imperative cause of nosocomial infections. Cockroaches are the routine insects accountable for the spread of resistant bacterial strains, exclusively MRSA.

The current survey aimed to appraise the frequency of Panton-Valentine leucocidin (PVL) and Staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec (SCCmec) in MRSA bacteria recovered from hospital cockroaches.

Thirty-six MRSA isolates were recovered from the external washing samples of American and German hospital cockroaches. Bacteria were subjected to the PCR amplification of SCCmec types and the PVL gene.

The SCCmec types III (44.44%), I (27.77%), and II (16.66%) were the most frequent types among MRSA bacteria. The frequency of SCCmec types IVa, IVd, and V was 2.77%, 2.77%, and 5.55%, respectively. The SCCmec types IVb and IVc were not detected in the assessed samples. Twelve out of 36 (33.33%) MRSA isolates harbored the PVL gene. The frequency of the PVL gene was 35.71% and 25%, respectively, among MRSA bacteria recovered from Periplaneta americana and Blattella germanica hospital cockroaches.

The current research is an initial description of SCCmec types and the PVL gene among MRSA bacteria recovered from hospital cockroaches. High frequency of SCCmec types I, II, and III and moderate-to-low frequency of the PVL gene signify the occurrence of health care associated-MRSA.