Novel Type of Staphylococcal Cassette Chromosome mec in a Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Strain Isolated in Sweden

Abstract

We identified a novel type of staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec (SCC mec ) element carried by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) strain JCSC6082 isolated in Sweden. The SCC mec element was demarcated by characteristic nucleotide sequences at both ends and was integrated at the 3′ end of orfX . The element carried a novel combination of a type 5 ccr gene complex and class C1 mec gene complex. The J regions of the element were homologous to those of the SCC mercury element of S. aureus strain 85/2082, with nucleotide identity greater than 99%. However, the novel SCC mec element from JCSC6082 did not carry the mer operon nor Tn 554 , suggesting that evolution to SCC mec could have been from a common ancestor by acquisition of the class C1 mec gene complex. The novel SCC mec element from JCSC6082 was flanked by a novel SCC-like chromosome cassette (CC6082), which was demarcated by two direct repeats and could be excised from the chromosome independently of the SCC mec element. Our data suggest that novel SCC mec elements can be generated on the staphylococcal chromosome through the recombination between extant SCC elements and mec gene complexes.