A USA300 variant and other human-related methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus strains infecting cats and dogs in France.

OBJECTIVES

To characterize methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) clinical strains from cats and dogs in France, and to compare the clones identified with the distribution of French human MRSA.

METHODS

Susceptibilities to antimicrobials were assessed by disc diffusion. Resistance and virulence genes were screened using a microarray-based assay. Isolates were additionally characterized by SmaI macrorestriction analysis and spa typing.

RESULTS

From 2006 to 2010, the proportion of MRSA infections in pets in France was low (1.8%), but most isolates (87.0%, 20/23) belonged to human clones. The most common clones were the Lyon clone (69.6%, 16/23), the livestock-associated CC398 (13.0%, 3/23) and the Geraldine clone (8.7%, 2/23). Interestingly, we report the first USA300 clone infecting a European dog, which was probably imported by a US patient.

CONCLUSIONS

Over a 5 year period, the proportion of MRSA infections in pets appears low (<2%) in France, but the distribution of the clones mostly mirrors the epidemiology of human invasive clones. These data highlight the role of pets as both victims and reservoirs of endemic, epidemic and/or invasive MRSA.