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Comparative Analysis of USA300 Virulence Determinants in a Rabbit Model of Skin and Soft Tissue Infection

2011; Oxford University Press; Volume: 204; Issue: 6 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1093/infdis/jir441

1537-6613

Scott D. Kobayashi, Natalia Małachowa, Adeline R. Whitney, Kevin R. Braughton, Donald J. Gardner, Dan Long, Juliane Bubeck Wardenburg, Olaf Schneewind, Michaël Otto, Frank R. DeLeo,

Biochemical and Structural Characterization

Community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) infections are frequently associated with strains harboring genes encoding Panton-Valentine leukocidin (PVL). The role of PVL in the success of the epidemic CA-MRSA strain USA300 remains unknown. Here we developed a skin and soft tissue infection model in rabbits to test the hypothesis that PVL contributes to USA300 pathogenesis and compare it with well-established virulence determinants: alpha-hemolysin (Hla), phenol-soluble modulin-alpha peptides (PSMα), and accessory gene regulator (Agr). The data indicate that Hla, PSMα, and Agr contribute to the pathogenesis of USA300 skin infections in rabbits, whereas a role for PVL could not be detected.