Survey of Staphylococcus aureus carriage by free-living red deer (Cervus elaphus): Evidence of human and domestic animal lineages.

ABSTRACT: Staphylococcus aureus is a pathogen that can affect multiple host species. Evidence of transmission between humans and animals and among different animal species has been reported in recent years. In this study, we investigated 284 free-living red deer (Cervus elaphus) in the Central Italian Alps to assess the prevalence and molecular characteristics of S. aureus in nasal and intestinal samples in relation to host features and environmental factors. A prevalence of 90%, 26.2% and 10.7% of S. aureus was detected in nasal rectal swabs and faeces, respectively. Calves had a higher probability of being S. aureus intestinal carriers than adults, especially in females when considering faecal samples. Clonal complex (CC) 425 was the most prevalent lineage (61.5%). This is a lineage known to be wi

SUBMITTER: Luzzago C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9790211 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature