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. 2012 Oct;206(8):1178-84.
doi: 10.1093/infdis/jis491. Epub 2012 Aug 7.

Influence of host genetics and environment on nasal carriage of staphylococcus aureus in danish middle-aged and elderly twins

Paal Skytt Andersen  1 , Jacob Krabbe Pedersen, Peder Fode, Robert L Skov, Vance G Fowler Jr, Marc Stegger, Kaare Christensen
Affiliations

Influence of host genetics and environment on nasal carriage of staphylococcus aureus in danish middle-aged and elderly twins

Paal Skytt Andersen et al. J Infect Dis. 2012 Oct.

Abstract

Background: Nasal carriage is a major risk factor for Staphylococcus aureus infection. Approximately, one-quarter of adults carry S. aureus. However, the role of host genetics on S. aureus nasal carriage is unknown.

Methods: Nasal swabs were obtained from a national cohort of middle-aged and elderly Danish twins. Subjects colonized with S. aureus were identified by growth on selective plates and spa typing. A second sample was obtained from twins initially concordant for carriage. Twins found to again be colonized with S. aureus were defined as persistent carriers.

Results: The prevalence of S. aureus carriage among 617 twin pairs (monozygotic/dizygotic pairs: 112/505) was 26.3% (95% confidence interval [CI], 24.0%-28.9%). The concordance rate for carriage did not differ significantly between pairs of monozygotic (37.5%; 95% CI, 22.3%-53.8%) twins and same sex (24.2%; 95% CI, 15.4%-34.5%), and opposite sex (21.4%; 95% CI, 12.0%-33.4%) dizygotic twins. Despite shared childhoods, only 1 of 617 pairs was concordant with respect to lineage. Although heritability increased for S. aureus and lineage persistency, no significant heritability was detected.

Conclusion: In this study, host genetic factors exhibited only a modest influence on the S. aureus carrier state of middle-aged and elderly individuals.

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