This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowReprints and Permissions
Right arrow Copyright Information
Right arrow Books from ASM Press
Right arrow MicrobeWorld
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Fuller, E.
Right arrow Articles by Fawcett, T.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Fuller, E.
Right arrow Articles by Fawcett, T.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy, December 2005, p. 5075-5080, Vol. 49, No. 12
0066-4804/05/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/AAC.49.12.5075-5080.2005
Copyright © 2005, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

ß-Lactam Resistance in Staphylococcus aureus Cells That Do Not Require a Cell Wall for Integrity

Elizabeth Fuller,1,3 Catherine Elmer,1,3 Fiona Nattress,1 Richard Ellis,2 Glenda Horne,1 Peter Cook,1,4 and Tony Fawcett3*

University Hospital of North Durham, North Road, Durham DH1 5TW,1 South Tyneside District Hospital, Harton Lane, South Shields NE34 0PL,2 School of Biological and Biomedical Sciences, University of Durham, Durham DH1 3LE,3 Department of Clinical Sciences, University of Newcastle, Newcastle, United Kingdom4

Received 4 May 2005/ Returned for modification 13 July 2005/ Accepted 18 September 2005

Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 9144 cells with defective cell walls were generated on a medium with elevated osmolality in the presence of sublethal levels of penicillin G. On removal of antibiotic pressure, the cells exhibited stable penicillin and methicillin resistance. The resistance was homogeneous and its acquisition was enhanced following transient cell wall-defective growth. The resistant cells were mecA negative, ß-lactamase negative and did not contain any mutations in the coding regions of pbp genes. When penicillin was added back to resistant cells, they continued to grow and produced a diffuse cell wall that was resistant to the action by lysostaphin but was very sensitive to lysis with Triton X-100. These data indicate that the resistant cells are not dependent upon an intact cell wall for osmotic stability and they are able to switch readily to this mode of growth in the presence of penicillin G.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: School of Biological and Biomedical Sciences, University of Durham, South Road, Durham DH1 3LE, United Kingdom. Phone: 44 0191 3341328. Fax: 44 0191 3341201. E-mail: tony.fawcett{at}durham.ac.uk.

Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy, December 2005, p. 5075-5080, Vol. 49, No. 12
0066-4804/05/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/AAC.49.12.5075-5080.2005
Copyright © 2005, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Nadarajah, J., Lee, M. J. S., Louie, L., Jacob, L., Simor, A. E., Louie, M., McGavin, M. J. (2006). Identification of different clonal complexes and diverse amino acid substitutions in penicillin-binding protein 2 (PBP2) associated with borderline oxacillin resistance in Canadian Staphylococcus aureus isolates.. J Med Microbiol 55: 1675-1683 [Abstract] [Full Text]  


Copyright © 2009 by the American Society for Microbiology.   For an alternate route to Journals.ASM.org, visit: http://intl-journals.asm.org | More Info»