Phenotypic and genotypic characterization of antibiotic resistance in the methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus strains isolated from hospital cockroaches

Zohreh AbdolmalekiEmail author,
Zohreh Mashak and
Farhad Safarpoor Dehkordi

Antimicrobial Resistance & Infection Control20198:54

https://doi.org/10.1186/s13756-019-0505-7

Received: 17 December 2018
Accepted: 4 March 2019
Published: 13 March 2019

Abstract

Background

Cockroaches are one of the most important and frequent insects responsible for harboring, transmission and dissemination of human pathogens in the hospital environment. The present research was done to study the phenotypic and genotypic characterization of antibiotic resistance in the Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus strains isolated from hospital cockroaches.

Methods

Five-hundred and thirty Periplanets americana and Blattella germanicacockroaches were collected and their gut content and external washing samples were subjected to bacterial isolation. MRSA strains were subjected to disk diffusion and PCR amplification of antibiotic resistance genes.

Results

Prevalence of MRSA strains in P. americana and B. germanica cockroaches were 52.77 and 43.33%, respectively. External washing samples of P. americanacockroaches had the highest prevalence of MRSA strains (59.57%). MRSA isolates of external washing samples harbored the highest prevalence of resistance against penicillin (100%), ceftaroline (100%), tetracycline (100%), gentamicin (83.33%) and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (80.55%). MRSA strains isolated from gut content samples harbored the highest prevalence of resistance against penicillin (100%), ceftaroline (100%), tetracycline (100%), trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (80%) and gentamicin (73.33%). BlaZ, aacA-D, tetK, msrA, dfrA, ermA, gyrA, grlA and rpoB were the most commonly detected antibiotic resistance genes amongst the MRSA strains.

Conclusions

The present investigation is the first report of the phenotypic and genotypic evaluation of antibiotic resistance in the MRSA strains isolated from P. americanaand B. germanica hospital cockroaches. Hospital cockroaches are considered as a potential mechanical vector for MRSA strains.