<?xml version="1.0"?>
<Articles JournalTitle="Iranian Journal of Microbiology">
  <Article>
    <Journal>
      <PublisherName>Tehran University of Medical Sciences</PublisherName>
      <JournalTitle>Iranian Journal of Microbiology</JournalTitle>
      <Issn>2008-3289</Issn>
      <Volume>17</Volume>
      <Issue>1</Issue>
      <PubDate PubStatus="epublish">
        <Year>2025</Year>
        <Month>02</Month>
        <Day>05</Day>
      </PubDate>
    </Journal>
    <title locale="en_US">mecA and PVL genes in methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus from clinical specimens: a cross-sectional hospital based study from Nepal</title>
    <FirstPage>99</FirstPage>
    <LastPage>105</LastPage>
    <AuthorList>
      <Author>
        <FirstName>Sirjana</FirstName>
        <LastName>Adhikari</LastName>
        <affiliation locale="en_US">Central Department of Microbiology, Tribhuvan University, Kirtipur, Kathmandu, Nepal</affiliation>
      </Author>
      <Author>
        <FirstName>Supriya</FirstName>
        <LastName>Sharma</LastName>
        <affiliation locale="en_US">Central Department of Microbiology, Tribhuvan University, Kirtipur, Kathmandu, Nepal</affiliation>
      </Author>
      <Author>
        <FirstName>Sanjib</FirstName>
        <LastName>Adhikari</LastName>
        <affiliation locale="en_US">Central Department of Microbiology, Tribhuvan University, Kirtipur, Kathmandu, Nepal</affiliation>
      </Author>
      <Author>
        <FirstName>Sanjit</FirstName>
        <LastName>Shrestha</LastName>
        <affiliation locale="en_US">Department of Pathology, Kirtipur Hospital, Kirtipur, Kathmandu, Nepal</affiliation>
      </Author>
      <Author>
        <FirstName>Dwij</FirstName>
        <LastName>Bhatta</LastName>
        <affiliation locale="en_US">Central Department of Microbiology, Tribhuvan University, Kirtipur, Kathmandu, Nepal</affiliation>
      </Author>
    </AuthorList>
    <History>
      <PubDate PubStatus="received">
        <Year>2024</Year>
        <Month>09</Month>
        <Day>13</Day>
      </PubDate>
      <PubDate PubStatus="accepted">
        <Year>2024</Year>
        <Month>12</Month>
        <Day>16</Day>
      </PubDate>
    </History>
    <abstract locale="en_US">Background and Objectives: Staphylococcus aureus has increasingly been associated with community and healthcare-associated infections worldwide and contributes to treatment failures due to the emergence of multidrug-resistant (MDR) and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) strains. We aimed to determine the prevalence and antibiotic susceptibility pattern of MRSA isolated from patients attending a burn center and to detect mecA and PVL genes among MRSA isolates.
Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional hospital based study was conducted on 1950 clinical samples collected from hospital inpatients and outpatients of Kirtipur Hospital, which is a burn specialist hospital in Kathmandu, Nepal. Each sample underwent conventional cultural methods for bacterial isolates identification.
Results: Out of 1950 samples, 452 (23.2%) samples showed bacterial growth, of which 109 isolates (24.1%) were identified as Gram positive and 343 (75.9%) as Gram negative bacteria. Among the Gram positive bacteria, 53 (48.62%) were Staphylococcus aureus. Of the total S. aureus isolates, 40 (75.5%) were MRSA and 48 (90.6%) were MDR. Of the 40 MRSA isolates, 29 (72.5%) carried the mecA gene and 3 (7.5%) harbored PVL gene.
Conclusion: The high prevalence of MRSA in a burn unit underscores the need for more rigorous infection control practices that follow standard protocols to reduce MRSA transmission in both individuals and the hospital environment.</abstract>
    <web_url>https://ijm.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijm/article/view/5035</web_url>
    <pdf_url>https://ijm.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijm/article/download/5035/1746</pdf_url>
  </Article>
</Articles>
