Epidemic superbug strains evolved from one bacterium: study

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S. aureus bacteria escaping destruction by human white blood cells. Credit: Rocky Mountain Laboratories National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)
S. aureus bacteria escaping destruction by human white blood cells. Credit: Rocky Mountain Laboratories, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)

Community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) infections are caused primarily by a single strain—USA300—of an evolving bacterium that has spread with “extraordinary transmissibility” throughout the United States during the past five years, according to a new study led by National Institutes of Health (NIH) scientists. CA-MRSA, an emerging public health concern, typically causes readily treatable soft-tissue infections such as boils, but also can lead to life-threatening conditions that are difficult to treat.


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