Fighting MRSA with Bacteria Killing Viruses

Via guardian.co.uk -

British scientists are developing a virus-laden cream that must be prodded up the noses of doctors, nurses, patients and their visitors in the hope of halting the spread of the hospital superbug, MRSA.

The cream, which could be available in two years, contains a cocktail of viruses that kill dangerous bacteria in the nasal passages, but are otherwise harmless. Human trials of the cream are expected next year following lab tests which proved the viruses were lethal to 15 strains of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus commonly found in hospitals.

Scientists at the Coventry-based biotech company Novolytics screened a variety of bacteria-killing viruses to identify those most effective at wiping out MRSA. "We know we can kill clinically relevant strains. It's a question now of putting it into the right cream, in terms of the formulation, to make sure that it works," said Nick Housby, a scientist at the company. He added that hospital staff and patients carrying the superbug might require treatment once every three months to prevent them passing on the infection.

Earlier this month, the Lancet medical journal said the government would almost certainly fail to meet its own target of halving the rate of MRSA infections in hospitals next year. A 6% drop in cases in England was too little too late, it added.

There are currently more than 15 new infections with MRSA each day, but to meet the target, that figure must drop to 10.5 new infections.

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According to the Center of Disease Control (CDC) -

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a type of staph that is resistant to antibiotics called beta-lactams. Beta-lactam antibiotics include methicillin and other more common antibiotics such as oxacillin, penicillin and amoxicillin. While 25% to 30% of the population is colonized with staph, approximately 1% is colonized with MRSA.

Staph and MRSA can also cause illness in persons outside of hospitals and healthcare facilities. MRSA infections that are acquired by persons who have not been recently (within the past year) hospitalized or had a medical procedure (such as dialysis, surgery, catheters) are know as CA-MRSA infections. Staph or MRSA infections in the community are usually manifested as skin infections, such as pimples and boils, and occur in otherwise healthy people.

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According to the Alliance for the Prudent Use of Antibiotics (APUA) -

A major difference between the two types of MRSA is that the community form (CA-MRSA) possesses a potent toxin called Panton-Valentine leukocidin, which attacks infection-fighting white blood cells called leukocytes. The most serious form of CA-MRSA infection causes necrotizing fasciitis, a severe, rapidly progressing and life-threatening skin infection. The CA-MRSA are genetically distinguishable from hospital associated MRSA.

In the US, two clones (strains) of staph, called USA300 and USA400, are associated with the community MRSA (CA-MRSA). USA300 has emerged as the most prominent clone and is not found among hospital strains. It was not observed before the year 2000, when multiple other clones existed.