Spread of LA-MRSA CC398 in Danish mink (Neovison vison) and mink farm workers.

Authors :: Hansen JE
Stegger M
Pedersen K
Sieber RN
Larsen J
Larsen G
Lilje B
Chriél M
Andersen PS
Larsen AR
Source :: Veterinary microbiology [Vet Microbiol] 2020 Jun; Vol. 245, pp. 108705. Date of Electronic Publication: 2020 May 01.
Publication Year :: 2020
Abstract: More than 55 million mink skins were produced globally in 2017. As a consequence, a large number of people are employed in mink production worldwide. In Denmark, farmed mink were found to constitute a reservoir of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) clonal complex (CC) 398 and 6000 mink farm workers in Denmark are potentially exposed to LA-MRSA CC398. The study aim was to elucidate the source of LA-MRSA CC398 in mink farms and to investigate possible transmission to humans. In total, 161 LA-MRSA CC398 isolates from mink (n = 65), mink feed (n = 16) and humans (n = 80) with reported contact to mink, were whole-genome sequenced and compared to 183 LA-MRSA CC398 isolates from Danish pigs and an international collection of 89 S. aureus CC398 isolates. Most of the mink-associated isolates clustered within the predominant LA-MRSA CC398 lineages circulating in the Danish pig production, supporting that pigs are a source of LA-MRSA CC398 in mink feed, mink, and mink farmers.<br /> (Copyright © 2020 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)