Insights on antibiotic resistance of Staphylococcus aureus from its whole genome: genomic island SCC.

Staphylococci are ubiquitous colonizers of the skin and mucous membranes and Staphylococcus aureus is the most pathogenic species. The spread of antibiotic resistance among S. aureus strains is a major concern in the treatment of staphylococcal infections. Acquisition of resistance may involve mutation of a bacterial gene on the chromosome or transfer of a resistance gene from other organisms by some form of genetic exchange (conjugation, transduction, or transformation). Completion of whole genome sequences of three methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) strains has provided us a bird's-eye view of the distribution of the mobile genetic elements in the bacterial chromosome that encode antibiotic resistance as well as pathogenicity in S. aureus.