An Analysis Upon the Growth of Genotyping Techniques For Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus: Advancements in Rapid and High-throughput MRSA Genotyping Techniques for Epidemiological Management

Abstract

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is an important human pathogenthat is endemic in hospitals all over the world. It has more recently emergedas a serious threat to the general public in the form of community-acquiredMRSA. MRSA has been implicated in a wide variety of diseases, ranging from skininfections and food poisoning to more severe and potentially fatal conditions,including: endocarditis, septicaemia and necrotising pneumonia. Treatment ofMRSA disease is complicated and can be unsuccessful due to the bacterium'sremarkable ability to develop antibiotic resistance. The considerable economic and public health burdenimposed by MRSA has fuelled attempts by researchers to understand the evolutionof virulent and antibiotic resistant strains and thereby improveepidemiological management strategies. Central to MRSA transmission managementstrategies is the implementation of active surveillance programs, via whichunique genetic fingerprints, or genotypes, of each strain can be identified.Despite numerous advances in MRSA genotyping methodology, there remains a needfor a rapid, reproducible, cost-effective method that is capable of producing ahigh level of genotype discrimination, whilst being suitable for highthroughput use.