Molecular characterization and clonal genetic diversity of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus of pig origin in Taiwan.

Livestock-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (LA-MRSA) is an emerging public health threat. The aims of this study were to identify nasal carriage of MRSA in finishing pigs from different geographical areas of Taiwan and to compare the genetic features of LA-MRSA with other countries. A total of 299 swine nasal samples were collected from 11 counties in western Taiwan with 220 identified MRSA isolates characterized by spa, SCCmec, MLST, pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE), antibiogram, and Panton-Valentine leukocidin (PVL) toxin genes.