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Applied and Environmental Microbiology, January 2003, p. 18-23, Vol. 69, No. 1
0099-2240/03/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/AEM.69.1.18-23.2003
Copyright © 2003, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Bacterial Competition for Human Nasal Cavity Colonization: Role of Staphylococcal agr Alleles

Gerard Lina,1* Florent Boutite,2 Anne Tristan,1 Michèle Bes,1 Jerome Etienne,1 and Francois Vandenesch1

Centre National de Référence des Staphylocoques, INSERM E-0230,1 Clinical Pharmacology Unit, EA 643 & EZUS-APRET, IFR 62, Faculté de Médecine Laennec, Lyon, France2

Received 12 April 2002/ Accepted 30 September 2002

We examined the bacterial aerobic nasal flora of 216 healthy volunteers to identify potential competitive interactions among different species, with special emphasis on the influence of staphylococcal agr alleles. The Staphylococcus aureus colonization rate correlated negatively with the rate of colonization by Corynebacterium spp. and non-aureus staphylococci, especially S. epidermidis, suggesting that both Corynebacterium spp. and S. epidermidis antagonize S. aureus colonization. Most of the S. aureus and S. epidermidis isolates were agr typed by a PCR method. Only one S. aureus agr (agrSa) allele was detected in each carrier. Multiple logistic regression of the two most prevalent agrSa alleles (agr-1Sa and agr-2Sa) and the three S. epidermidis agr (agrSe) alleles showed a specific influence of the agr system. The results of this model did not support conclusions drawn from previous in vitro agr-specific cross-inhibition experiments. Our findings suggest that the agr alleles, which are strongly linked to the bacterial genetic background, may simply be associated with common biological properties—including mediators of bacterial interference—in the strains that bear them.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Centre National de Référence des Staphylocoques, INSERM E-0230, IRF62, Faculté de Médecine Laennec, 7 rue Guillaume Paradin, 69372 Lyon cedex 08, France. Phone: 33 (0) 478 77 86 57. Fax: 33 (0) 478 77 86 58. E-mail: geralina{at}univ-lyon1.fr.

Applied and Environmental Microbiology, January 2003, p. 18-23, Vol. 69, No. 1
0099-2240/03/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/AEM.69.1.18-23.2003
Copyright © 2003, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



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