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Characterization of multiple antibiotic resistant clinical strains of Staphylococcus isolated from pregnant women vagina

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Abstract

Vagina which is one of the important reservoirs for Staphylococcus and in pregnant women pathogenic strains may infect the child during the birth or by vertical transmission. A total of 68 presumptive Staphylococcus strains isolated from human vagina were found to be gram-positive cocci, and only 32 (47%) isolates were found beta-hemolytic. Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass-spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) results confirmed 33 isolates belonged to Staphylococcus which consisting of 6 species, i.e., S. aureus (14), S. vitulinus (7), S. epidermidis (4), S cohnii (3), S. equorum (3), and S. succinus (2). Further, the result of antibiotic susceptibility tests showed that large proportions (76%–100%) of the isolates were resistant to multiple antibiotics and more often resistant to penicillin (100%), ampicillin (100%), oxacillin (97%), oxytetracycline (97%), vancomycin (97%), rifampin (85%), erythromycin (82%), and streptomycin (76%). In the present study, only the sec enterotoxin gene was detected in four S. aureus strains. DNA fingerprints of the 33 isolates that were generated using random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) and enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus (ERIC) PCR analysis revealed great genetic relatedness of isolates. High prevalence of vaginal colonization with multiple antibiotic-resistant staphylococci among pregnant women was observed which were emerged from the single respective species clones that underwent evolution. The vertical transmission of these multiple antibiotic-resistant Staphylococcus species to the infant is possible; therefore, the findings of this study emphasize the need for regular surveillance of antibiotic-resistant bacterial strains in pregnant women in this area.

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Acknowledgements

This study was supported by the North-West University, Mafikeng Campus, South Africa. We would like to thank the University of South Africa and NRF for their assistance with MALDI-TOF mass-spectrometry analysis.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Microbiology, School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, North-West University, Private Bag X2046, Mmabatho, 2735, South Africa

    Bakwena Ashton Hetsa, Ajay Kumar & Collins Njie Ateba

  2. Food Security and Safety Niche Area, Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, North-West University, Private Bag X2046, Mmabatho, 2735, South Africa

    Collins Njie Ateba

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  1. Bakwena Ashton Hetsa
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  2. Ajay Kumar
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  3. Collins Njie Ateba
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Correspondence to Collins Njie Ateba.

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Ethical clearance was obtained from both the NWU Ethics Committee (NWU-00023-13-A9) and the North West Provincial Department of Health. All participants were provided with a consent form, and samples were collected only after they had completed the forms.

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Hetsa, B.A., Kumar, A. & Ateba, C.N. Characterization of multiple antibiotic resistant clinical strains of Staphylococcus isolated from pregnant women vagina. Folia Microbiol 63, 607–617 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12223-018-0593-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12223-018-0593-4

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