Emergence of MRSA Sequence Type 398 in Horses

The strain has now been reported in horses in many European countries as well as in a single Canadian horse. Zoonotic infection from a horse has also been reported.
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In the Netherlands in 2005, a small number of unexpected methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections in people with pig contact led to identification of a novel MRSA clone, sequence type (ST) 398. This clone was quickly called “‘livestock-associated” MRSA, although recent evidence suggests that it originated in humans as a methicillin-susceptible strain that subsequently moved to pigs, became methicillin-resistant, and lost some human-adaptive traits.

Nonetheless, whatever it is termed, ST398 MRSA is an important issue in people and animals in some regions. The organism has been identified in pigs (and to a lesser degree other livestock such as cattle and poultry) worldwide and is commonly found in people that have contact with livestock. In some northern European countries, it is the leading cause of MRSA infection in people.

Equine MRSA infections were first reported in the late 1990s, and it soon became apparent that MRSA was endemic in the horse population in many regions, being found in a small percentage (typically <3%) of healthy horses and causing sporadic infections and outbreaks.

Abnormally high rates of MRSA colonization of horse owners and equine veterinarians have also been reported, along with smaller numbers of zoonotic infections. Until the late 2000s, the vast majority of MRSA isolates from horses were common human epidemic clones (e.g. ST8), suggesting that equine MRSA was ultimately human in origin

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