Abstract

MECHANISMS OF VANCOMYCIN RESISTANCE IN STAPHYLOCOCCUS AUREUS, ARTICLE REVIEW

Riad A. Dellol*

Abstract

Staphylococcus aureus is a major cause of potentially life threatening infections acquired in health care and community settings. It has developed resistance to most classes of antimicrobial agents with dramatic increase in the number of health care associated infections due to vancomycin resistant S. aureus (VRSA). Two mechanisms of staphylococci resistance to vancomycin were studied. The first one, by having the van genes which was detected in resistant isolates by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The only gene found in the selected VRSA isolates was vanA gene. Vancomycin has been used successfully for over 50 years for the treatment of Staphylococcus aureus infections, particularly those involving methicillin-resistant S. aureus. It has proven remarkably reliable, but its efficacy is now being questioned with the emergence of strains of S. aureus that display hetero resistance, intermediate resistance, and, occasionally, complete vancomycin resistance. More recently, an association has been established between poor outcome and infections with strains of S. aureus with an elevated vancomycin MIC within the susceptible range. Vancomycin is a glycopeptide antibiotic used for the treatment of Gram-positive bacterial infections.

Keywords: Staphylococcus aureus, Pathogenicity, Vancomycin Resistance.