Diagnosis and Antimicrobial Treatment of Staphylococcus sp.

Dear Colleagues,

Staphylococcus is a bacterial genus composed of Gram-positive commensal bacteria that asymptomatically colonize different parts of the body. In some conditions, Staphylococcus species are also one of the major human pathogens, associated with significant morbidity and mortality worldwide. Among this genus, S. aureus is the most well-known pathogen, being responsible for an extensive array of clinical infections, ranging from mild skin infections to serious and life-threatening infections, including bloodstream, soft tissue, prosthetic joint, and surgical site infections, as well as pneumonia, osteomyelitis, endocarditis, nosocomial bacteremia, and sepsis. Another group of important pathogens is composed of coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS). CoNS have emerged as major pathogens in healthcare-associated facilities, where S. epidermidis, S. haemolyticus, and S. lugdunensis are described as the most clinically relevant species. Despite being less virulent than S. aureus, there are a number of virulence factors identified in these strains. In both S. aureus and CoNS, biofilm formation is considered the most important aspect. In addition, the production of bacteriocins and enterotoxins, as well as the presence of antibiotic resistance genes, are aspects that also contribute to their virulence and consequently to the difficulty of the treatment of staphylococci infections.

This Special Issue is dedicated to increasing our knowledge about new methodologies to detect staphylococci and new strategies to combat the infections caused by these problematic microorganisms. We invite you to submit an original research article or a review related to these topics.

Dr. Luís Melo
Dr. Cláudia Sousa
Guest Editors

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• Staphylococcus sp.
  
• methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA)
• coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS)
• biofilms
• pathogen detection
• antibiofilm strategies
• alternative treatment strategies