Coagulase-Positive and Coagulase-Negative Staphylococci Animal Diseases

Abstract The genus Staphylococcus consists of a variety of opportunistic pathogens of diverse relevance in veterinary medicine. Staphylococci are divided into coagulase-positive staphylococci (CoPS) and coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS) based on their ability to coagulate rabbit plasma. Another property of these organisms is their capacity to become resistant to antimicrobials. Methicillin resistance is of particular relevance because it is conferred by the mec A gene, which encodes for production of an altered penicillin binding protein that has a low affinity for all beta-lactam antibiotics (penicillins, cephalosporins, carbapenems). CoNS are an important mec A reservoir that have the potential to be transferred to susceptible Staphylococcus strains, including Staphylococcus aureus . Therefore, methicillin-resistant staphylococci can be resistant to a broad range of antimicrobials. The most clinically relevant staphylococci in animals are CoPS belonging to S. aureus along with members of the Staphylococcus intermedius group, particularly Staphylococcus pseudintermedius (the group also includes S. intermedius and Staphylococcus delphini ) . S. aureus is mainly involved in bovine mastitis (which is considered the leading cause of economic losses in dairy cattle herds) and can occasionally inhabit the skin and mucous membrane of dogs, too. In dairy farms that have successfully controlled S. aureus -related mastitis, CoNS became a frequent cause of bovine mammary gland infections. Conversely, dogs represent the main S. pseudintermedius reservoir, with carriage rates varying based on the diverse body-sites. Although S. aureus and S. pseudintermedius are mostly recovered from cattle and dogs, their presence may be sometimes associated with human contact.