Rapid tests for the detection of the Mycobacterium abscessus subsp. bolletii strain responsible for an epidemic of surgical-site infections in Brazil

Author(s)

Cristianne Kayoko Matsumoto ^[1] ; Erica Chimara ^[2] ; Jesus Pais Ramos ^[3] ; Carlos Eduardo Dias Campos ^[4] ; Paulo Cesar de Souza Caldas ^[5] ; Karla Valeria Batista Lima ^[6] ; Maria Luiza Lopes ^[7] ; Rafael Silva Duarte ^[8] ; Sylvia Cardoso Leão ^[9]

Affiliation

^[1] Universidade Federal de São Paulo. Escola Paulista de Medicina. Departamento de Microbiologia, Imunologia e Parasitologia - Brasil

^[2] Instituto Adolfo Lutz - Brasil

^[3] Escola Nacional de Saúde Pública-Fiocruz. Centro de Referência Professor Hélio Fraga - Brasil

^[4] Escola Nacional de Saúde Pública-Fiocruz. Centro de Referência Professor Hélio Fraga - Brasil

^[5] Escola Nacional de Saúde Pública-Fiocruz. Centro de Referência Professor Hélio Fraga - Brasil

^[6] Instituto Evandro Chagas - Brasil

^[7] Instituto Evandro Chagas - Brasil

^[8] Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro. Instituto de Microbiologia Professor Paulo de Góes - Brasil

^[9] Universidade Federal de São Paulo. Escola Paulista de Medicina. Departamento de Microbiologia, Imunologia e Parasitologia - Brasil

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: Memórias do Instituto Oswaldo Cruz; v. 107, n. 8, p. 969-977, 2012-12-00.

Abstract

A single strain of Mycobacterium abscessus subsp. bolletii, characterised by a particular rpoB sequevar and two highly related pulsed field gel electrophoresis patterns has been responsible for a nationwide outbreak of surgical infections in Brazil since 2004. In this study, we developed molecular tests based on polymerase chain reaction restriction-enzyme analysis (PRA) and sequencing for the rapid identification of this strain. Sequences of 15 DNA regions conserved in mycobacteria were retrieved from GenBank or sequenced and analysed in silico. Single nucleotide polymorphisms specific to the epidemic strain and located in enzyme recognition sites were detected in rpoB, the 3' region of the 16S rDNA and gyrB. The three tests that were developed, i.e., PRA-rpoB, PRA-16S and gyrB sequence analysis, showed 100%, 100% and 92.31% sensitivity and 93.06%, 90.28% and 100% specificity, respectively, for the discrimination of the surgical strain from other M. abscessus subsp. bolletii isolates, including 116 isolates from 95 patients, one environmental isolate and two type strains. The results of the three tests were stable, as shown by results obtained for different isolates from the same patient. In conclusion, due to the clinical and epidemiological importance of this strain, these tests could be implemented in reference laboratories for the rapid preliminary diagnosis and epidemiological surveillance of this epidemic strain. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 08/01451-8 - Molecular caracterization of rapidly growing micobacteria associated or not to outbreaks in laparoscopic surgeries for the development of a quick identification test
• Grantee: Cristianne Kayoko Matsumoto
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate