Molecular Typing ofNeisseria gonorrhoeaeIsolates byOpa-Typing and Ribotyping in New Delhi, India

[摘要] Control and preventive measures for gonococcal infections are based on precise epidemiological characteristics ofN. gonorrhoeaeisolates. In the present study the potential utility of opa-typing and ribotyping for molecular epidemiological study of consecutive gonococcal strains was determined. Sixty gonococcal isolates were subjected to ribotyping with two restriction enzymes,AvaII andHincII, and opa-typing withTaqI andHpaII for epidemiological characterization of gonococcal population. Ribotyping withAvaII yielded 6 ribotype patterns while twelve RFLP patterns were observed withHincII.Opa-typing of the 60 isolates revealed a total 54 opa-types, which 48 were unique and 6 formed clusters. Fifty-two opa-types were observed withTaqI-digested PCR product while opa-typing withHpaII demonstrated 54 opa-types. The opa-types from isolates that were epidemiologically unrelated were distinct, whereas those from the sexual contacts were identical. The results showed that opa-typing is highly useful for characterizing gonococcal strains from sexual contacts and has more discriminatory than ribotyping that could differentiate between gonococci of the same ribotype. The technique even with a single restriction enzyme has a high level of discrimination (99.9%) between epidemiologically unrelated isolates. In conclusion, the molecular methods such as opa-typing and ribotyping can be used for epidemiological characterization of gonococcal strains.

[学科分类] 微生物学和免疫学