[Association between genotype screening results obtained by PFGE and PCR for hypervariable regions of the mecA gene...

The emergence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) has become a major epidemiological problem worldwide.

We determined the degree of association between the genotype screening results obtained by pulse-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for 7 hypervariable DNA regions associated with the mecA gene (HVR-mecA PCR), in the epidemiological analysis of 36 MRSA strains unrelated to nosocomial outbreaks, isolated from hospitalized patients at the County Hospital of Valdivia (Chile).

The strains were classified into 15 pulse types (A-O) and 5 genotypes (6, 14, 15, 16, and 17) by PFGE and HVR-mecA PCR, respectively. Most of the strains were grouped in pulse types D, E and I, which presented 85.7% similarity. The most common genotypes were 14 (36.1%) and 15 (33.3%). Each genotype detected by HVR-mecA PCR was distributed in more than one pulse type. The degree of association between genotypic screening by PFGE or HVR-mecA PCR was determined by calculating Cramer's V statistic and the contingency coefficient. In both cases, a value near 1 (0.84 and 0.78, respectively) was obtained, indicating a high association between these genotypic screenings. Thus these are complementary, not exclusionary techniques that can be equally applied.

PFGE is a standardized, high-technology molecular tool with considerable discriminatory power. HVR-mecA PCR is a fast, simple, accessible tool that has lower discriminatory power; nonetheless it can serve as an alternative method for epidemiological research in MRSA strains.