Article

Multilocus sequence type-dependent activity of human and animal cathelicidins against community-, hospital-, and livestock-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus isolates

Sun Do Kim1, Geun-Bae Kim1, Gi Yong Lee1, Soo-Jin Yang2,*
Author Information & Copyright
1Department of Animal Science and Technology, Chung-Ang University, Anseong 17546, Korea.
2Department of Veterinary Microbiology, College of Veterinary Medicine and Research Institute for Veterinary Science, Seoul National University, Seoul 08826, Korea.
*Corresponding Author: Soo-Jin Yang, Department of Veterinary Microbiology, College of Veterinary Medicine and Research Institute for Veterinary Science, Seoul National University, Seoul 08826, Korea, Republic of. E-mail: soojinjj@snu.ac.kr.

© Copyright 2022 Korean Society of Animal Science and Technology. This is an Open-Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Abstract

Sequence type (ST) 5 methicillin-resistant <italic>Staphylococcus aureus</italic> (MRSA) with staphylococcal cassette chromosome <italic>mec </italic>(SCC<italic>mec</italic>) type II (ST5-MRSA-II) and ST72-MRSA-IV represent the most significant genotypes for healthcare- (HA) and community-associated (CA) MRSA in Korea, respectively. In addition to the human-type MRSA strains, the prevalence of livestock-associated (LA) MRSA clonal lineages, such as ST541 and ST398 LA-MRSA-V in pigs and ST692 LA-MRSA-V and ST188 LA-MRSA-IV in chickens, has recently been found. In this study, clonotype-specific resistance profiles to cathelicidins derived from humans (LL-37), pigs (PMAP-36), and chickens (CATH-2) were examined using six different ST groups of MRSA strains: ST5 HA-MRSA-II, ST72 CA-MRSA-IV, ST398 LA-MRSA-V, ST541 LA-MRSA-V, ST188 LA-MRSA-IV, and ST692 LA-MRSA-V. Phenotypic characteristics often involved in cathelicidin resistance, such as net surface positive charge, carotenoid production, and hydrogen peroxide susceptibility were also determined in the MRSA strains. Human- and animal-type MRSA strains exhibited clonotype-specific resistance profiles to LL-37, PMAP-36, or CATH-2, indicating the potential role of cathelicidin resistance in the adaptation and colonization of human and animal hosts. The ST5 HA-MRSA isolates showed enhanced resistance to all three cathelicidins and hydrogen peroxide than ST72 CA-MRSA isolates by implementing increased surface positive charge and carotenoid production. In contrast, LA-MRSA strains employed mechanisms independent of surface charge regulation and carotenoid production for cathelicidin resistance. These results suggest that human- and livestock-derived MRSA strains use different strategies to counteract the bactericidal action of cathelicidins during the colonization of their respective host species.    

Keywords: merhicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus; CA-MRSA; HA-MRSA; LA-MRSA; Cathelicidin; Host adaptation