NARSA VALUES

 

Staphylococci with reduced susceptibility to glycopeptides have been reported in Japan, the United States, Europe and the Far East.  Fortunately, homogeneous resistance, isolates with vancomycin MICs>8μg/ml, are still rare.

 

The Value of NARSA

 

• NARSA has been playing a major role in monitoring, confirming and procuring isolates with reduced susceptibility to vancomycin into a central repository that is accessible to investigators that register with the network.

 

• The isolates in the repository have proved to be valuable resources to investigators around the world in studies to gain a better understanding of the mechanisms of resistance and assist in the identification of new therapeutic intervention strategies.

 

• The NARSA website has also become a valuable resource to link NIH-funded investigators and other staphylococcal researchers who have already registered themselves with the network.

 

• NARSA facilitates staphylococcal research by linking investigators from the private sector, public sector, research scientists and clinicians.

 

 

 

Repository Expansion

 

NARSA is currently in the process of an expansion program that will include the following categories of organisms:

 

Research isolates

 

Vector strains or isolates that contain characterized plasmids including antibiotic resistance markers.

 

Genome sequencing isolates

 

NARSA will house all the staphylococcal isolates with genome sequence data that have been made available to the public.  The following isolates available include:

 

Staphylococcus aureus N315

(Dr. Keiichi Hiramatsu, Juntendo University)

Staphylococcus aureus Mu50

(Dr. Keiichi Hiramatsu, Juntendo University)

Staphylococcus aureus COL

(Dr. Steven Gill, The Institute for Genomic Research)

Staphylococcus aureus 8325

(Dr. John Iandolo, Oklahoma University)

Staphylococcus aureus EMRSA-16 (strain 252)

 (Drs. Julian Parkhill and Mark Enright, Sanger Centre)

Staphylococcus aureus MSSA 476 (strain 476)

 (Drs. Julian Parkhill and Mark Enright, Sanger Centre)

Staphylococcus epidermidis RP62A

(Dr. Steven Gill, The Institute for Genomic Research)

 

Virulent and toxin producing strains

 

The repository will include several key isolates that have been characterized for the presence of a virulence trait.

 

Antibiotic resistant isolates

 

Other high profile resistance phenotypes will be procured and housed in the repository. For example, the linezolid resistant isolates of S. aureus recently reported in the Lancet 358: 207-208 (2001) will be made available through NARSA.

 

NARSA will continue to meet the needs of the global staphylococcal research community.