391275

Molecular study of <i>Staphylococcus aureus</i> accessory gene regulator (agr ) types in Tanta University Hospitals

Article

Last updated: 04 May 2025

Subjects

-

Tags

Clinical microbiology

Abstract

Background: Staphylococcus aureus has developed antibiotic resistance, a global challenge that makes managing infections difficult. The accessory gene regulator (agr) is a quorum-sensing system virulence regulator. Objectives: The objective of this study was to investigate the relations between agr types, antimicrobial resistance, and biofilm formation among S. aureus isolates. Methodology: Various clinical samples from patients with nosocomial infections in ICUs of Tanta University Hospitals were included. S. aureus isolates were identified, antibiotic sensitivity testing was done using Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion method, mecA gene screening by PCR, the tissue culture plate technique was utilized to evaluate the biofilm formation, and agr typing was detected by multiplex PCR. Results: Seventy-six S. aureus isolates were obtained; they were highly resistant to ampicillin (90.8%), imipenem (73.7%) and no resistance for vancomycin or linezolid in all isolates. 56 isolates (73.68%) were MRSA while 20 isolates (26.31%) were MSSA. There is a significant variation in biofilm formation between MSSA and MRSA isolates. Both biofilm-forming and non-forming isolates exhibited a rise in antibiotic resistance. Among all isolates, agr I was the commonest type (61.8%) followed by agr III (18.4%). The existence of agr I was linked to biofilm development. Isolates with agr I were resistant to Erythromycin, Gentamycin, Ciprofloxacin, Levofloxacin, and Tetracycline among MRSA isolates. Conclusion: High rate of antibiotic resistance, and biofilm production among agr-positive S. aureus isolates were detected in ICUs. Therefore, the development of a new effective anti-virulence agent is promising for the treatment of S. aureus infection.

DOI

10.21608/mid.2024.327713.2279

Keywords

Keywords: Staphylococcus aureus, AGR, Biofilm, Antimicrobial resistance, Virulence

Authors

First Name

Marwa

Last Name

Bahey

MiddleName

Gamal

Affiliation

Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, Tanta University, Egypt

Email

marwabahey@gmail.com

City

Tanta

Orcid

0009-0000-0873-113x

First Name

Alaa

Last Name

Abo Hagar

MiddleName

Mohamed

Affiliation

Department of Anesthesiology, surgical intensive care and pain medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Tanta University, Egypt

Email

alaaabohagar@yahoo.com

City

Tanta

Orcid

-

First Name

Dina

Last Name

Ali

MiddleName

Adam

Affiliation

Clinical Pathology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Tanta University, Egypt

Email

dr.dinaadam012@gmail.com

City

Tanta

Orcid

-

First Name

Sara

Last Name

Samy

MiddleName

Mina

Affiliation

Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, Tanta University, Egypt

Email

dr.sms2006@hotmail.com

City

-

Orcid

0000 0001-8082-9246

Volume

6

Article Issue

2

Related Issue

55370

Issue Date

2025-05-01

Receive Date

2024-10-11

Publish Date

2025-05-01

Page Start

659

Page End

669

Print ISSN

2682-4132

Online ISSN

2682-4140

Link

https://mid.journals.ekb.eg/article_391275.html

Detail API

http://journals.ekb.eg?_action=service&article_code=391275

Order

391,275

Type

Original Article

Type Code

1,157

Publication Type

Journal

Publication Title

Microbes and Infectious Diseases

Publication Link

https://mid.journals.ekb.eg/

MainTitle

Molecular study of <i>Staphylococcus aureus</i> accessory gene regulator (agr ) types in Tanta University Hospitals

Details

Type

Article

Created At

04 May 2025