{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,4]],"date-time":"2026-09-04T05:28:36Z","timestamp":1788499716071,"version":"build-2803163510"},"reference-count":44,"publisher":"Public Library of Science (PLoS)","issue":"7","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,30]],"date-time":"2026-07-30T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1785369600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/100014718","name":"National Natural Science Foundation of China programs","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["82360657 And 81760608"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["82360657 And 81760608"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100014718","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["www.plosone.org"],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["PLoS One"],"abstract":"\n Objective<\/jats:title>\n \n This study aimed to systematically investigate the molecular epidemiological characteristics of methicillin-resistant\n Staphylococcus aureus<\/jats:italic>\n (MRSA) in Ningxia hospitals, to elucidate their genetic evolutionary relationships, and to delineate the genomic and phenotypic profiles of the dominant lineages.\n <\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Methods<\/jats:title>\n \n Clinical isolates of MRSA strains collected between\n 01\/01\/2024 and 30\/06\/2024<\/jats:bold>\n were analyzed, employing second-generation gene sequencing technology, combined with MLST and SCC\n mec<\/jats:italic>\n typing, along with evaluation of drug resistance and virulence genes. A phylogenetic tree was constructed to analyze strain homology.\n <\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Results<\/jats:title>\n \n A total of 74 non-duplicate\n Staphylococcus aureus<\/jats:italic>\n strains (67 MRSA and 7 MSSA) were collected. The most common clonal strain was ST59-IVa, accounting for 46.27%. This strain exhibited a high prevalence of resistance genes\n mecA<\/jats:italic>\n and\n blaZ<\/jats:italic>\n , at 91.04%. All five ST22-IVa strains were found to lack\n mecA<\/jats:italic>\n and\n erm<\/jats:italic>\n genes but showed \u03b2-lactam resistance, while possessing both\n lukS\/F-PV (<\/jats:italic>\n PVL\n )<\/jats:italic>\n and\n tsst-1<\/jats:italic>\n virulence genes, indicating a significant toxicity risk. Genetic evolution analysis revealed that ST3355, ST4513, and ST59 were closely related, all belonging to SCC\n mec<\/jats:italic>\n types IVa; the other ST types exhibited mutations at various loci, with ST5 as the central node, resulting in a wider array of ST and SCC\n mec<\/jats:italic>\n typing.\n <\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n The ST59-IVa clone is the predominant MRSA strain in Ningxia hospitals, exhibiting multidrug resistance and virulence gene profiles consistent with national trends. However, the emergence of hypervirulent ST22-IVa strains with atypical resistance mechanisms warrants increased vigilance. We recommend enhancing the rational use of antibiotics in hospitals and implementing molecular surveillance for these highly virulent strains.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0354017","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,30]],"date-time":"2026-07-30T17:29:56Z","timestamp":1785432596000},"page":"e0354017","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1371\/journal.pone.corrections_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":1,"title":["Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infection in hospitalized patients is dominated by community-acquired strains: genomic epidemiological 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