Whole‐genome sequence analysis of Staphylococcus aureus from retail fish acknowledged the incidence of highly virulent ST672‐MRSA‐IVa/t1309, an emerging Indian clone, in Assam, India

• Published in: Environmental microbiology reports Vol. 14; no. 3; pp. 412 - 421
• Main Authors: Muneeb, K. H., Sudha, S., Sivaraman, G. K., Ojha, Rakshit, Mendem, Suresh Kumar, Murugesan, Devi, Raisen, C. L., Shome, Bibek, Holmes, Mark
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Hoboken, USA John Wiley & Sons, Inc 01-06-2022
• Subjects: Adenosine Monophosphate; Animals; Anti-Bacterial Agents - pharmacology; Antibiotic resistance; Antibiotics; Antimicrobial agents; Antimicrobial resistance; Biofilms; Clone Cells; Cloning; Drug resistance; Efflux; Epidemiology; Fish; Fisheries; Genes; Genomes; Genomic analysis; Incidence; MecA protein; Methicillin; Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus - genetics; Microbial Sensitivity Tests; Mutation; Nucleotide sequence; Pathogens; Penicillin; Plasmids; Resistance factors; Sepsis; Sequence Analysis; Staphylococcal Infections - epidemiology; Staphylococcus aureus; Staphylococcus aureus - genetics; Staphylococcus infections; Toxigenicity; Virulence; Virulence factors; Virulence Factors - genetics; Kuwait; India
• ISSN: 1758-2229; 1758-2229
• DOI: 10.1111/1758-2229.13024

Summary
The epidemiology and toxigenicity of MRSA in the fishery environment are poorly understood. In this study, methicillin‐resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) (n = 1) and methicillin‐susceptible S. aureus (MSSA) (n = 2) from retail fish were subjected to comprehensive genome analysis. Here, we report the occurrence of ST672‐MRSA‐IV/t1309 and ST5‐MSSA/t105 for the first time from India in the fishery environment. The resistome of the isolates was in concordance with their phenotypic resistance pattern. Phenotypically, the resistance profile of MSSA isolates (n = 2) was AMP‐CLI‐ERY‐NOR‐PEN. For MRSA (n = 1), it was AMP‐CFZ‐CLI‐ERY‐NOR‐OXA‐PEN. The antibiotic efflux genes and mutations in the antibiotic target accounted for fluoroquinolone resistance whereas methicillin resistance was conferred through possession of a mecA gene. Similarly, all three isolates carried a similar array of virulence factors. The conjugative plasmid inc18 and rep family 10 plasmids were found in two of the three isolates. This study documents the MRSA carrying SCCmec IVa elements which are the markers of community‐associated MRSA (CA‐MRSA). Through the possession of SCCmec IV elements, which are smaller than other types of SCCmec, MRSA can contribute to the rapid dissemination of antimicrobial resistance and virulence factors. In short, our findings highlighted that the presence of ST672‐MRSA in fishery environments may pose a risk to human health.