Mechanisms of Resistance to Glycopeptides in Staphylococcus aureus

• Main Authors: Maribel Castellano González, Armindo Perozo Mena
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English; Spanish
• Published: Universidad del Zulia,Facultad de Medicina,Departamento de Enfermedades Infecciosas y Tropicales 2010
• Subjects: staphylococcus aureus; glicopéptidos; vancomicina; teicoplanina; mecanismos de resistencia; Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine; RC955-962; Public aspects of medicine; RA1-1270; Arctic
• Online Access: https://doaj.org/article/72a17b203ed1418288d04f5727a1c083

Glycopeptides (vancomycin and teicoplanin) are an alternative therapeutic in the treatment of severe infections by methicillin-resistant S. aureus strains. However, two resistance mechanisms of S. aureus have already been described: low-level resistance, characterized by an abnormal thickening of the cellular wall, present in the VISA strains, and high-level resistance, mediated by the vanA operon, which causes the replacement of D-ala - D-ala terminal residues by D-ala-D-lac, decreasing its affinity for the antibiotic. This review summarizes the history of the emergence of glycopeptide resistance in S. aureus and considers the mechanisms that determine the resistance in these organisms as a background for understanding the need and potential roles of new agents of this kind.