Molecular analysis of Panton-Valentine Leucocidin (pvl) gene among MRSA and MSSA isolates

Abstract

The present study was conducted in order to determine the frequency of pvl gene among the pathogenic and healthy population isolates of Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and Methicillin Sensitive Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA). For this purpose, nasal swab samples were collected from the healthy individuals (to be used as controls, all the samples were collected irrespective of the sex and age factors), the pathogenic samples were collected from different patients suffering from skin &soft tissue infections caused by S. aureus (to be used as test samples).Both of these population samples were analyzed for the presence of pvl gene. S.aureus were identified through conventional microbiological identification procedures. In the case of normal samples, 70 nasal swabs were collected and only 33 (47%) proved to be S. aureus while 20 pathogenic samples were collected and all (100%) were cleared as S. aureus. For further distribution of samples into MRSA and MSSA, antibiotic susceptibility pattern was checked by using the standard protocols of Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion method. Two antibiotic discs Oxacillin (OX: 1ug) and cefoxitin (FOX: 30ug) were used. Among healthy population, MRSA was found to be 79% (n=26) and MSSA were present as 21% (n= 7). Among pathogenic strains 100% MRSA was detected where n= 20. Detection of pvl gene among the MRSA and MSSA isolates was done by using the uniplex PCR followed by gel electrophoresis. MRSA and MSSA of normal healthy population carried 49% and 7% pvl gene respectively. While, pathogenic MRSA samples carried 46% pvl gene among them. Potentially alarming percentage of pvl gene is present among the normal healthy individuals which indicates a future threat and a major health concern.

Molecular Characterization and Phage Typing of Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus Isolated from Clinical Samples in Isfahan, Iran

“…In Tabassum et al study in 2023, among the pathogenic samples isolated from the wound, 100% MRSA was identified. They found that the pathogenic MRSA samples contained 46% of the pvl gene, which is more than the present study (19.35%) (46).…”

Characterization of Staphylococcus aureus Nasal Carriage Among Healthcare Providers in an Intensive Care Unit: Insights into Antibiotic Resistance Profiles and Virulence Gene Distribution

“…The detection of tsst-1 and pvl genes is clinically significant because their expression can be associated with severe infections caused by this organism, such as severe pneumonia and toxic shock syndrome (21). In Tabassum et al's study, 49% of MRSA strains in the normal population and 46% in pathogenic MRSA strains carried the pvl gene, raising public health concerns (22). In another study, 19% of S. aureus strains were observed to be pvl-positive (23).…”

Exploring the virulence potential of immune evasion cluster genes in methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus from cancer patients

“…Additionally, SAK also inhibits α-defensins, antimicrobial peptides that possess bactericidal properties ( Scudiero et al, 2020 ). Moreover, the Panton-Valentine leukocidin (PVL), a two-component toxin, leads to the formation of pores in leukocyte cell membranes ( Tromp and van Strijp, 2020 , Tabassum et al, 2023 ).…”