Staphylococcus aureus, usually known as the ‘golden staph,’ is a very common pathogenic bacterium that is most commonly found on skin. [1] It is a Gram and catalase positive organism. It’s usually habitant is on the skin and a majority of individual’s noses and respiratory tract. S. aureus is one of the most important pathogen in today’s society as it can cause mild to severe infections amongst humans. S. aureus can enter the human body by a cut or severe scratch into the skin.
According to Better health Victoria, (Updated February 2015) approximately two to three individuals out of ten are carriers of the bacteria in their noses. [2] This bacterium is known as colonization, where the bacterium doesn’t cause any infection however, stays there as its home for the time being which is generally known as a commensal organism. S. aureus is usually spread through skin to skin contact making it a quite contagious organism and can also be a fomite organism as well by the skin contact of a contaminated object.
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aureus can cause infections such as boils and abscesses as well as impetigo, a highly contagious, crunchy skin infection that is frequently found of newborn babies and small children. [3] It causes superficial stys and furuncles, in worst case scenarios is can cause serious issues such as meningitis, pneumonia, osteomyelitis, septic phlebitis, some urinary tract infections and/or endocarditis. S. aureus is one of the main causes of hospital acquired (nosocomial) infection where the bacterium attaches itself to medical devices where operated by surgical wounds or infections [4]. The best way to prevent the spread of this organism is by proper personal hygiene by applying alcohol-based hand rubs before and after each patients and accurately autoclaving reusable objects and being sure to cover open wounds and cuts. Remember to wash hands religiously as
After the end of the experiment the unknown 10 sample was Staphylococcus epidermidis. Came to this conclusion by first beginning with a Gram Stain test. By doing this test it would be easier to determine which route to take on the man made flow chart. Gram positive and gram negative bacteria have a set of different tests to help determine the unknown bacterium. Based on the different tests that were conducted in lab during the semester it was determined that the blood agar, MSA, and catalase test are used for gram positive bacteria while Macconkey, EMB, TSI, and citrate tests are used for gram negative bacteria. The results of the gram stain test were cocci and purple. This indicated that the unknown bacteria were gram positive. The gram stain test eliminated Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumonia, Salmonella enterica, and Yersinia enterocolitica as choices because these bacteria are gram negative. Next a Blood Agar plate was used because in order to do a MSA or a Catalase test there needs to be a colony of the bacteria. The result of the Blood Agar plate was nonhemolytic. This indicated that there was no lysis of red blood cells. By looking at the plate there was no change in the medium. Next an MSA test was done and the results showed that there was growth but no color change. This illustrates that the unkown bacteria could tolerate high salt concentration but not ferment mannitol. The MSA plate eliminated Streptococcus pneumonia and Streptococcus pyogenes as choices since the bacteria can’t grow in high salt concentration. Staphylococcus aureus could be eliminated because not only did the unknown bacteria grow but also it didn’t change color to yellow. Lastly a Catalase test was done by taking a colony from the Blood Agar plate...
Biological evolution is defined as any genetic change in a population that is inherited over several, successive generations. (R.Bailey, 2014) The changes accumulate and over time a new species is created. One of the basic mechanisms of evolution is Natural Selection. Natural Selection is random genetic variation occurring within an organisms DNA and the beneficial mutations being preserved because they aid survival. (C.Darwin, 1859) Two notable scientists associated with the theory of evolution include Charles Darwin and Jean-Baptiste Lamarck.
Life History and Characteristics: Staphylococcus aureus is a gram positive bacterium that is usually found in the nasal passages and on the skin of 15 to 40% of healthy humans, but can also survive in a wide variety of locations in the body. This bacterium is spread from person to person or to fomite by direct contact. Colonies of S. aureus appear in pairs, chains, or clusters. S. aureus is not an organism that is contained to one region of the world and is a universal health concern, specifically in the food handling industries.
Pathogens are a type of microorganism that spreads viral and bacterial diseases. These diseases when present in human blood and body fluids are known as blood borne pathogens, and can spread from one person to another. (Worcester polytechnic institute) The most serious types of blood borne diseases are the hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV), which can cause liver damage; and HIV (human immunodeficiency virus), which is responsible for causing AIDS (acquired immune deficiency syndrome). The blood borne pathogens can be spread when the blood or body fluids (semen, vaginal fluid, breast milk, and amniotic fluid) of an infected individual comes into contact with mucous membranes or an open sore or cut on the skin of another person. Mucus membranes are located in the eyes, nose, mouth, and other areas as well. ("Bloodborne pathogens: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia") Two of the most common ways that pathogens are transmitted is through the exchange of fluids during sexual intercourse or by sharing infected IV needles. (Worcester polytechnic institute)
Impetigo can occur in the bullous and nonbullous forms. Winn et al. (2006) stated it is a highly contagious bacterial infection of the superficial layers of the epidermis. Impetigo is caused by S.aureus in 80-90% of cases and in 10-20% of cases by S.pyogenes (p. 634). Nonbullous impetigo is caused by a host response to the bacterial infection, whereas a staphylococcal toxin causes bullous impetigo (Cole and Gazewood, 2007, p. 859). Nonbullous impetigo is more common and accounts for approximately 70% of reported impetigo diagnoses as described by (Cole and Gazewood, 2007, p. 859). In the same article Cole and Gazewood (2007) go on to describe the pathophysiology of nonbullous impetigo which starts as a single papule or red macule that rapidly turns into a vesicle. The vesicle breaks easily and forms an erosion of skin, soon after the liquid matter dries and forms a characteristic honey-colored crust that may be pus-like (p 859-860). Impetigo seems to be overwhelmingly spread by autoinoculation and tends to affect areas subject to environmental trauma, such as the extremities or the face as seen in the case of the patient described above (Cole and Gazewood, 2007, p. 859-860). In 2003, Brown, Shriner, Schwartz, and Janniger, stated, patients can easily auto inoculate themselves and pass the infection to others after excoriating an infected site. This allows a rapid distribution of infection, especially in places that have a high population of children such as schools and daycare. Children normally are normally infected through contact with other children, but fomites are another infection source as well. When adults are infected, they usually develop impetigo from contact with children or adults but can also contract an infection...
The principle sites of nosocomial infections in patients, in order from most common to least common are: urinary tract, surgical wounds, respiratory tract, skin, blood, gastrointestinal tract, and central nervous system (Abedon). According to the CDC, the most common pathogens that cause nosocomial infections are Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeurginosa, and Escherichia coli (EHA). Methicillin resistant Staphylococcal aureus (MRSA) is a strain of bacteria that is commonly...
The scientific word for a staph infection is staphylococcus aureus. In Greek staphylo means cluster or bunch of grapes, the word coccus is a round bacterium, and aureus is a Latin word for gold. Sir Alexander Ogston name the infection this because, when you look under a microscope it looks like a cluster of grapes on a vine. When doctors go look under the microscope they use test gram stain to see what kind of staph infection you have.
S. aureus is a formidable pathogen that infects nearly every tissue of the human body. S. aureus infections include mild skin and soft tissue infections, as well as serious diseases like sepsis and toxic shock syndrome, which can result in death. The evolution of S. aureus has been seen since it was identified. Initially, S. aureus was treated by the typical antibiotic, penicillin. When penicillin resistant strains were identified in 1959, methicillin was introduced to treat these infections. In 1961 there were reports from the United Kingdom of S. aureus isolates that had acquired resistance to methicillin (methicillin-resistant S. aureus, MRSA) [1], and MRSA isolates were soon recovered from other European countries, and later from Japan, Australia, and the United States. MRSA is now a problem in hospitals worldwide and is increasingly recovered from nursing homes and the community [2, 3]. The methicillin resistance gene (mecA) encodes a methicillin-resistant penicillin-binding protein that is not present in susceptible strains and is believed to have been acquired from a distantly related species [4]. Many MRSA isolates are resistant to multiple antibiotics and are susceptible only to glycopeptide antibiotics such as vancomycin and investigational
The different types of bacterium which cause Conjunctivitis are highly contagious and transmitted by face to face contact and through airborne droplets. Conjunctivitis can also be passed through facial lotions, eye-make up and other shared materials with an infected person. Touch, espeacially in children, is usually how the bacterium are transmitted!
Two recent outbreaks of Golden Staph (S. aureus) have occured that appear unrelated, but were identified as being the same strain of CA-MRSA (Community-Acquired Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus).
Staphylococcus aureus, aka, Golden Staph because of its colour on the laboratory plate. It is a bacteria that is normally harmless to the skin, can sometimes cause minor infections and boils etc. This bacteria is slowly becoming more resistant to the most powerful antibiotics. 20 – 40% of all Golden Staph are resistant to the antibiotic. Only 5% of those bacteria can be treated with vancomycin which is the last line of defence and isn’t looking too good anymore. Golden Staph is a type of superbug. Superbugs are strains of bacteria that are resistant to overused antibiotics as they have mutated after being in contact with antibiotics. Therefore the antibiotics can't kill the superbug anymore. Around half antibiotic intake is unnecessary in Australia.
Staphylococcus aureus is a gram-positive coccal bacterium that is a member of the Firmicutes, and is frequently found in the nose, respiratory tract, and on the
The Clp proteases contribute to S. aureus subcutaneous skin infection. A) Hemolytic activity of spent culture supernatants from WT S. aureus and clp mutants. N=12-PBS, 13-WT, 12-clpC, 10-clpP and 6-clpX. WT C57Bl/6J mice were infected subcutaneously with WT S. aureus and clp mutants for 5 days. B) Areas of dermonecrosis over time. Black-WT, blue-clpC, red-clpP and green-clpX. C) Areas of dermonecrosis quantified at day 5. D) Bacterial counts from punch biopsies at day 5. Each point represents a mouse. Lines display median. ****P<0.0001, ***P<0.001, **P<0.01 and *P<0.05 relative to WT control.
Hospital acquired infections are one of the most common complications of care in the hospital setting. Hospital acquired infections are infections that patients acquired during the stay in the hospital. These infections can cause an increase in the number of days the patients stay in the hospital. Hospital acquired infections make the patients worse or even cause death. “In the USA alone, hospital acquired infections cause about 1.7 million infections and 99,000 deaths per year”(secondary).
Booth who is part of a software company that specializes in educational solutions for allied health and nursing education discuss the prevention of hospital acquired infections. Healthcare associated infections previously known as nosocomial infections are infections that occur secondary due to numerous different factors. Many of these infections are spread due to the lack of attention from their health care providers. There are guidelines for standard precautions which should be followed. The most important standard precaution to help prevent the spread of these