Investigation of a Staphylococcus argenteus Strain Involved in a Chronic Prosthetic-Joint Infection.

Staphylococcus argenteusis an emerging species responsible for infections comparable to those induced byStaphylococcus aureus. It has been involved in few chronic or persistent infections so far. In this study, we described a case of a persistent prosthetic-joint infection (PJI) affecting a young woman. We investigated in vitro the virulence traits of the incriminatedS. argenteusstrain (bone cell invasion, biofilm formation and induction of inflammation) and analyzed its genome, in comparison with two other strains ofS. argenteusand twoS. aureusisolates. It appeared that thisS. argenteusPJI strain combined biofilm formation, osteoblast invasion and intracellular persistence abilities together with genes potentially involved in the escape of the host immune defenses, which might explain the chronicization of the infection.