Emergence of virulent staphylococci overriding innate immunity of skin in communities

Abstract

More than half a century has passed since MRSA emerged in the world, and the characteristic nature of MRSA keeps changing. Initially healthcareassociated MRSA prevailed in hospital and healthcare facilities, and thereafter community-associated MRSA emerged and spread in communities. Reports of severe case infection by CA-MRSA are gradually increasing in Japan. Now MRSA can be classified into 11 types according to its staphylococcal cassette chromosome (SCCmec) type. Together with the variety of virulence gene repertoire, clinically important MRSA is the group with diverse genotypes. In this chapter, we focused on CA-MRSA and summarized its history, diversity, and virulence factors.