Genetic diversity of Staphylococcus aureus isolated from different clinical samples at Modibbo Adama University Teaching Hospital, Yola using RAPD-PCR

Abstract

Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) is a Gram-positive bacterium that causes a wide range of variable illnesses and can be either transmitted from one place to another through contact with patients or airborne. Because of the increased diversity of S. aureus globally, particularly those that are of clinical significance, and the rapid epidemiology of the bacteria, there is the need to explore the current pattern in our local settings. To achieve this target, there is the need for a genetic method that is fast, easy, cost- effective and able to genetically differentiate between microbes within a given species. Hence, this study utilized the simplicity of RAPD-PCR as a genetic fingerprinting tool in determining the genetic diversity of S. aureus isolated from clinical samples within a local setting. Eighteen isolates of S. aureus were RAPD-typed using a single primer and analyzed using NTSYSpc software. Of the 12 RAPD profiles identified, two major groups and two major clusters were deduced from the dendrogram. More so, ten subtypes were identified amongst which three were indistinguishable based on Jaccard's coefficient of similarity. The findings of this study reveals that most of the isolates are closely  related genetically suggesting that may have emerged from closely related clones. Equally, the result of this study depicts the high-resolution power of RAPD-PCR in elucidating the genetic diversity of S. aureus. Therefore, this simple molecular technique could be employed as a routine technique for the molecular epidemiology studies of S. aureus in our local settings and the country as a whole.