Online ISSN: 2515-8260

Staphylococcus aureus: An Overview of Discovery, Characteristics, Epidemiology, Virulence Factors and Antimicrobial Sensitivity

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Narin A Rasheed1,*, Nawfal R Hussein

Abstract

Staphylococcus aureus is an important infectious pathogen in health sector and communities. S. aureus was first described by the Scottish surgeon Alexander Ogaston in surgical abscess in 1881. It causes various infections ranged between simple to life threating infections. Owing potent toxins and other virulence factors enabled the bacteria to be very virulent. Additionally, acquisition of antimicrobial resistant genes increased the challenge in treating the infections caused by bacteria especially methicillin resistant S. aureus strains (MRSA) that are often multidrug resistant strains. The circulation of MRSA between health settings and communities resulted in changing even the genetic map for the strains in both places. Vancomycin was used for years and still acts as the drug of choice for treating MRSA infections but recently the resistance to vancomycin has risen and vancomycin resistant S. aureus were recorded. Consequently, different regimes were used like combination of antibiotics to reduce the resistance rate to antibiotics if they were used as a single drug and practiced the control measures at health settings to reduce the spread of MRSA strains. At last, global health organizations call for research and finding new antibiotics agents and put MRSA on the top list of infectious agents that need more antibiotics.

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