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Angela M. Kearns

Other affiliations: Public Health England
Bio: Angela M. Kearns is an academic researcher from Health Protection Agency. The author has contributed to research in topics: Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus & SCCmec. The author has an hindex of 36, co-authored 91 publications receiving 7269 citations. Previous affiliations of Angela M. Kearns include Public Health England.


Papers
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The discovery of a strain of S aureus isolated from bulk milk that was phenotypically resistant to meticillin but tested negative for the mecA gene is reported and new diagnostic guidelines for the detection of MRSA should consider the inclusion of tests for mecALGA251.
Abstract: Summary Background Animals can act as a reservoir and source for the emergence of novel meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) clones in human beings. Here, we report the discovery of a strain of S aureus (LGA251) isolated from bulk milk that was phenotypically resistant to meticillin but tested negative for the mecA gene and a preliminary investigation of the extent to which such strains are present in bovine and human populations. Methods Isolates of bovine MRSA were obtained from the Veterinary Laboratories Agency in the UK, and isolates of human MRSA were obtained from diagnostic or reference laboratories (two in the UK and one in Denmark). From these collections, we searched for mecA PCR-negative bovine and human S aureus isolates showing phenotypic meticillin resistance. We used whole-genome sequencing to establish the genetic basis for the observed antibiotic resistance. Findings A divergent mecA homologue ( mecA LGA251 ) was discovered in the LGA251 genome located in a novel staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec element, designated type-XI SCC mec . The mecA LGA251 was 70% identical to S aureus mecA homologues and was initially detected in 15 S aureus isolates from dairy cattle in England. These isolates were from three different multilocus sequence type lineages (CC130, CC705, and ST425); spa type t843 (associated with CC130) was identified in 60% of bovine isolates. When human mecA -negative MRSA isolates were tested, the mecA LGA251 homologue was identified in 12 of 16 isolates from Scotland, 15 of 26 from England, and 24 of 32 from Denmark. As in cows, t843 was the most common spa type detected in human beings. Interpretation Although routine culture and antimicrobial susceptibility testing will identify S aureus isolates with this novel mecA homologue as meticillin resistant, present confirmatory methods will not identify them as MRSA. New diagnostic guidelines for the detection of MRSA should consider the inclusion of tests for mecA LGA251 . Funding Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Higher Education Funding Council for England, Isaac Newton Trust (University of Cambridge), and the Wellcome Trust.

839 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
06 Apr 2011-PLOS ONE
TL;DR: A high level of biodiversity among MRSA, especially among strains harbouring SCCmec IV and V elements is shown, and the data indicate a high rate of genetic recombination in MRSA involving SCC elements, bacteriophages or other mobile genetic elements and large-scale chromosomal replacements.
Abstract: In recent years, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) have become a truly global challenge. In addition to the long-known healthcare-associated clones, novel strains have also emerged outside of the hospital settings, in the community as well as in livestock. The emergence and spread of virulent clones expressing Panton-Valentine leukocidin (PVL) is an additional cause for concern. In order to provide an overview of pandemic, epidemic and sporadic strains, more than 3,000 clinical and veterinary isolates of MRSA mainly from Germany, the United Kingdom, Ireland, France, Malta, Abu Dhabi, Hong Kong, Australia, Trinidad & Tobago as well as some reference strains from the United States have been genotyped by DNA microarray analysis. This technique allowed the assignment of the MRSA isolates to 34 distinct lineages which can be clearly defined based on non-mobile genes. The results were in accordance with data from multilocus sequence typing. More than 100 different strains were distinguished based on affiliation to these lineages, SCCmec type and the presence or absence of PVL. These strains are described here mainly with regard to clinically relevant antimicrobial resistance- and virulence-associated markers, but also in relation to epidemiology and geographic distribution. The findings of the study show a high level of biodiversity among MRSA, especially among strains harbouring SCCmec IV and V elements. The data also indicate a high rate of genetic recombination in MRSA involving SCC elements, bacteriophages or other mobile genetic elements and large-scale chromosomal replacements.

834 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The group consensus was to recommend spa and staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec (SCCmec) typing as the preferred methods for MRSA, which are informative in defining particular strain characteristics and utilise standardised nomenclatures, making them applicable globally.

539 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The genetic changes associated with adaptation to the hospital environment and with increasing drug resistance over time are document, and how MRSA evolution likely has been influenced by country-specific drug use regimens are documented.
Abstract: The widespread use of antibiotics in association with high-density clinical care has driven the emergence of drug-resistant bacteria that are adapted to thrive in hospitalized patients. Of particular concern are globally disseminated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) clones that cause outbreaks and epidemics associated with health care. The most rapidly spreading and tenacious health-care-associated clone in Europe currently is EMRSA-15, which was first detected in the UK in the early 1990s and subsequently spread throughout Europe and beyond. Using phylogenomic methods to analyze the genome sequences for 193 S. aureus isolates, we were able to show that the current pandemic population of EMRSA-15 descends from a health-care-associated MRSA epidemic that spread throughout England in the 1980s, which had itself previously emerged from a primarily community-associated methicillin-sensitive population. The emergence of fluoroquinolone resistance in this EMRSA-15 subclone in the English Midlands during the mid-1980s appears to have played a key role in triggering pandemic spread, and occurred shortly after the first clinical trials of this drug. Genome-based coalescence analysis estimated that the population of this subclone over the last 20 yr has grown four times faster than its progenitor. Using comparative genomic analysis we identified the molecular genetic basis of 99.8% of the antimicrobial resistance phenotypes of the isolates, highlighting the potential of pathogen genome sequencing as a diagnostic tool. We document the genetic changes associated with adaptation to the hospital environment and with increasing drug resistance over time, and how MRSA evolution likely has been influenced by country-specific drug use regimens.

422 citations


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Book
01 Jan 2019
TL;DR: The tabular information presented here represents the most current information for drug selection, interpretation, and QC using the procedures standardized in the most recent editions of M02, M07, and M11, and users should replace outdated editions with the current editions of CLSI documents.
Abstract: The data in the interpretive tables in this supplement are valid only if the methodologies in the following Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI)–approved standards are followed: M02-A12—Performance Standards for Antimicrobial Disk Susceptibility Tests; Approved Standard—Twelfth Edition; M07-A10—Methods for Dilution Antimicrobial Susceptibility Tests for Bacteria That Grow Aerobically; Approved Standard—Tenth Edition; and M11-A8—Methods for Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing of Anaerobic Bacteria; Approved Standard—Eighth Edition. The standards contain information about both disk (M02) and dilution (M07 and M11) test procedures for aerobic and anaerobic bacteria. Clinicians depend heavily on information from the microbiology laboratory for treatment of their seriously ill patients. The clinical importance of antimicrobial susceptibility test results demands that these tests be performed under optimal conditions and that laboratories have the capability to provide results for the newest antimicrobial agents. The tabular information presented here represents the most current information for drug selection, interpretation, and QC using the procedures standardized in the most current editions of M02, M07, and M11. Users should replace the tables published earlier with these new tables. (Changes in the tables since the previous edition appear in boldface type.) Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI). Performance Standards for Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing. 27th ed. CLSI supplement M100 (ISBN 1-56238-804-5 [Print]; ISBN 1-56238-805-3 [Electronic]). Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute, 950 West Valley Road, Suite 2500, Wayne, Pennsylvania 19087 USA, 2017. The Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute consensus process, which is the mechanism for moving a document through two or more levels of review by the health care community, is an ongoing process. Users should expect revised editions of any given document. Because rapid changes in technology may affect the procedures, methods, and protocols in a standard or guideline, users should replace outdated editions with the current editions of CLSI documents. Current editions are listed in the CLSI catalog and posted on our website at www.clsi.org. If you or your organization is not a member and would like to become one, and to request a copy of the catalog, contact us at: Telephone: +1.610.688.0100; Fax: +1.610.688.0700; E-Mail: customerservice@clsi.org; Website: www.clsi.org. M100S, 26th ed. January 2016 Replaces M100-S25 Performance Standards for Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing Jean B. Patel, PhD, D(ABMM) Franklin R. Cockerill III, MD George M. Eliopoulos, MD Stephen G. Jenkins, PhD, D(ABMM), F(AAM) James S. Lewis II, PharmD Brandi Limbago, PhD David P. Nicolau, PharmD, FCCP, FIDSA Robin Patel, MD M ir Pow ll, MD, FRCP, FRCPath Sandra S. Richter, MD, D(ABMM) Jana M. Swenson, MMSc Maria M. Traczewski, BS, MT(ASCP) John D. Turnidge, MD Melvi P. Weinstein, MD Barbara L. Zimmer, PhD

3,367 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The global situation of antibiotic resistance, its major causes and consequences, and key areas in which action is urgently needed are described and identified.
Abstract: The causes of antibiotic resistance are complex and include human behaviour at many levels of society; the consequences affect everybody in the world. Similarities with climate change are evident. Many efforts have been made to describe the many different facets of antibiotic resistance and the interventions needed to meet the challenge. However, coordinated action is largely absent, especially at the political level, both nationally and internationally. Antibiotics paved the way for unprecedented medical and societal developments, and are today indispensible in all health systems. Achievements in modern medicine, such as major surgery, organ transplantation, treatment of preterm babies, and cancer chemotherapy, which we today take for granted, would not be possible without access to effective treatment for bacterial infections. Within just a few years, we might be faced with dire setbacks, medically, socially, and economically, unless real and unprecedented global coordinated actions are immediately taken. Here, we describe the global situation of antibiotic resistance, its major causes and consequences, and identify key areas in which action is urgently needed.

3,181 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This review comprehensively covers the epidemiology, pathophysiology, clinical manifestations, and management of S. aureus as a leading cause of bacteremia and infective endocarditis as well as osteoarticular, skin and soft tissue, pleuropulmonary, and device-related infections.
Abstract: Staphylococcus aureus is a major human pathogen that causes a wide range of clinical infections. It is a leading cause of bacteremia and infective endocarditis as well as osteoarticular, skin and soft tissue, pleuropulmonary, and device-related infections. This review comprehensively covers the epidemiology, pathophysiology, clinical manifestations, and management of each of these clinical entities. The past 2 decades have witnessed two clear shifts in the epidemiology of S. aureus infections: first, a growing number of health care-associated infections, particularly seen in infective endocarditis and prosthetic device infections, and second, an epidemic of community-associated skin and soft tissue infections driven by strains with certain virulence factors and resistance to β-lactam antibiotics. In reviewing the literature to support management strategies for these clinical manifestations, we also highlight the paucity of high-quality evidence for many key clinical questions.

3,054 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Recent advances in understanding of the mechanisms by which bacteria are either intrinsically resistant or acquire resistance to antibiotics are reviewed, including the prevention of access to drug targets, changes in the structure and protection of antibiotic targets and the direct modification or inactivation of antibiotics.
Abstract: Antibiotic-resistant bacteria that are difficult or impossible to treat are becoming increasingly common and are causing a global health crisis. Antibiotic resistance is encoded by several genes, many of which can transfer between bacteria. New resistance mechanisms are constantly being described, and new genes and vectors of transmission are identified on a regular basis. This article reviews recent advances in our understanding of the mechanisms by which bacteria are either intrinsically resistant or acquire resistance to antibiotics, including the prevention of access to drug targets, changes in the structure and protection of antibiotic targets and the direct modification or inactivation of antibiotics.

2,837 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present an overview of the current knowledge of the determinants (both human and bacterial) and risks of S aureus nasal carriage, and summarise the population dynamics of SA.
Abstract: Staphylococcus aureus is a frequent cause of infections in both the community and hospital. Worldwide, the increasing resistance of this pathogen to various antibiotics complicates treatment of S aureus infections. Effective measures to prevent S aureus infections are therefore urgently needed. It has been shown that nasal carriers of S aureus have an increased risk of acquiring an infection with this pathogen. The nose is the main ecological niche where S aureus resides in human beings, but the determinants of the carrier state are incompletely understood. Eradication of S aureus from nasal carriers prevents infection in specific patient categories-eg, haemodialysis and general surgery patients. However, recent randomised clinical trials in orthopaedic and non-surgical patients failed to show the efficacy of eliminating S aureus from the nose to prevent subsequent infection. Thus we must elucidate the mechanisms behind S aureus nasal carriage and infection to be able to develop new preventive strategies. We present an overview of the current knowledge of the determinants (both human and bacterial) and risks of S aureus nasal carriage. Studies on the population dynamics of S aureus are also summarised.

2,280 citations