Staphylococcus aureus is one of the most common pathogens in hospital and community acquired bacterial infections. The bacteria lives on the human nasopharynx and skin, but in certain strains can cause skin and soft tissue infections. When Staphylococcus aureus was first discovered in the 1940s, it was primary treated with various antibiotics, but since then Methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA), antibiotic resistant strains have development. Since the 1960s, the development of different strains, hospital-acquired MRSAs (HA-MRSA), community-acquired MRSA (CA-MRSA) and livestock-associated MRSA (LA-MRSA), represent sub-groups of MRSA all of which are resistant to [beta]-lactam antibiotics, including penicillin, amoxicillin, oxacillin and methicillin. Given the resistant nature of the bacteria, along with high infection rates – 72,444 cases of invasive MRSA infections in the US per year, MRSA poses a serious problem to public health. In order to control the spread of infection, the bacteria as a whole will be examined including the genetic elements of the bacteria responsible for resistance, how transmission occurs as well as prevention and strategies for control. …show more content…
reviews all current knowledge on genetic and regulation systems to understand the bio-molecular mechanisms of MRSA. The article brings together the various sub-strains of MRSA, such as HA-MRSA, CA-MRSA and LA-MRSA, to give background information regarding MRSA development since the 1960s. The bio-molecular systems behind [beta]-lactam antibiotic resistance within the bacteria are also explained, leading to a deeper analysis of the MRSA gene. This includes an analysis of bla and mec regulations which control expression of [beta]-lactamase and PBP2a, that work to inhibit [beta]-lactam