Application of spoligotyping to noncultured Mycobacterium tuberculosis bacteria requires an optimized approach.
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Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to Dick van Soolingen.
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The classical Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MtbC) subspecies include Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Mycobacterium africanum (subtypes I and II), Mycobacterium bovis (along with the attenuated M. bovis bacillus Calmette-Guérin [BCG]), and Mycobacterium microti; increasingly recognized MtbC groupings include Mycobacterium bovis subsp. caprae and "Mycobacterium tuberculosis subsp. canettii." Previous investigations have documented each MtbC subspecies as a source of animal and/or human tuberculosis. However, study of these organisms is hindered by the lack of a single protocol that quickly and easily differentiates all of the MtbC groupings. Towards this end we have developed a rapid, simple, and reliable PCR-based MtbC typing method that makes use of MtbC chromosomal region-of-difference deletion loci. Here, seven primer pairs (which amplify within the loci 16S rRNA, Rv0577, IS1561', Rv1510, Rv1970, Rv3877/8, and Rv3120) were run in separate but simultaneous reactions. Each primer pair either specifically amplified a DNA fragment of a unique size or failed, depending upon the source mycobacterial DNA. The pattern of amplification products from all of the reactions, visualized by agarose gel electrophoresis, allowed immediate identification either as MtbC composed of M. tuberculosis (or M. africanum subtype II), M. africanum subtype I, M. bovis, M. bovis BCG, M. caprae, M. microti, or "M. canettii" or as a Mycobacterium other than MtbC (MOTT). This MtbC PCR typing panel provides an advanced approach to determine the subspecies of MtbC isolates and to differentiate them from clinically important MOTT species. It has proven beneficial in the management of Mycobacterium collections and may be applied for practical clinical and epidemiological use.
The present update on the global distribution of Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex spoligotypes provides both the octal and binary descriptions of the spoligotypes for M. tuberculosis complex, including Mycobacterium bovis, from >90 countries (13,008 patterns grouped into 813 shared types containing 11,708 isolates and 1,300 orphan patterns). A number of potential indices were developed to summarize the information on the biogeographical specificity of a given shared type, as well as its geographical spreading (matching code and spreading index, respectively). To facilitate the analysis of hundreds of spoligotypes each made up of a binary succession of 43 bits of information, a number of major and minor visual rules were also defined. A total of six major rules (A to F) with the precise description of the extra missing spacers (minor rules) were used to define 36 major clades (or families) of M. tuberculosis. Some major clades identified were the East African-Indian (EAI) clade, the Beijing clade, the Haarlem clade, the Latin American and Mediterranean (LAM) clade, the Central Asian (CAS) clade, a European clade of IS6110 low banders (X; highly prevalent in the United States and United Kingdom), and a widespread yet poorly defined clade (T). When the visual rules defined above were used for an automated labeling of the 813 shared types to define nine superfamilies of strains (Mycobacterium africanum, Beijing, M. bovis, EAI, CAS, T, Haarlem, X, and LAM), 96.9% of the shared types received a label, showing the potential for automated labeling of M. tuberculosis families in well-defined phylogeographical families. Intercontinental matches of shared types among eight continents and subcontinents (Africa, North America, Central America, South America, Europe, the Middle East and Central Asia, and the Far East) are analyzed and discussed.
Several recent studies have used proportions of tuberculosis cases sharing identical DNA fingerprint patterns (i.e., isolate clustering) to estimate the extent of disease attributable to recent transmission. Using a model of introduction and transmission of strains with different DNA fingerprint patterns, we show that the properties and interpretation of clustering statistics may differ substantially between settings. For some unindustrialized countries, where the annual risk for infection has changed little over time, 70% to 80% of all age groups may be clustered during a 3-year period, which underestimates the proportion of disease attributable to recent transmission. In contrast, for a typical industrialized setting (the Netherlands), clustering declines with increasing age (from 75% to 15% among young and old patients, respectively) and underestimates the extent of recent transmission only for young patients. We conclude that, in some settings, clustering is an unreliable indicator of the extent of recent transmission.
Alterations in genes involved in the repair of DNA mutations (mut genes) result in an increased mutation frequency and better adaptability of the bacterium to stressful conditions. W-Beijing genotype strains displayed unique missense alterations in three putative mut genes, including two of the mutT type (Rv3908 and mutT2) and ogt. These polymorphisms were found to be characteristic and unique to W-Beijing phylogenetic lineage. Analysis of the mut genes in 55 representative W-Beijing isolates suggests a sequential acquisition of the mutations, elucidating a plausible pathway of the molecular evolution of this clonal family. The acquisition of mut genes may explain in part the ability of the isolates of W-Beijing type to rapidly adapt to their environment.
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Among 2,901 new smear-positive tuberculosis cases in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, 40 cases of treatment failure and 39 relapsing cases were diagnosed. All initial and follow-up Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates of these case-patients had (nearly) identical restriction fragment length polymorphism patterns, and the Beijing genotype was a significant risk factor for treatment failure and relapse (odds ratio 2.8, 95% confidence interval 1.5 to 5.2).
T cell responses to ESAT-6 and culture filtrate protein 10 (CFP-10), antigens expressed by Mycobacterium tuberculosis but not by M. bovis bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG), were found to discriminate reliably between infection with M. tuberculosis and BCG vaccination. Because the esat-6 and cfp-10 genes occur in M. kansasii and M. marinum, T cell responses to ESAT-6 and CFP-10 were investigated in patients infected with M. kansasii or M. marinum, persons intensively exposed to environmental mycobacteria, and unexposed control subjects. Tuberculin skin tests were performed, and peripheral blood mononuclear cells were cocultured with ESAT-6, CFP-10, peptide mixtures of ESAT-6 and CFP-10, and control antigens. When enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and enzyme-linked immunospot assay (ELISPOT) were used to measure interferon-gamma production, most M. kansasii- or M. marinum-infected patients and several persons exposed to environmental mycobacteria were found to respond to ESAT-6 and/or CFP-10. ELISA and ELISPOT yielded comparable results, as did whole antigen and peptides (P<.0001). These results may be relevant for the development of novel assays for diagnosis of tuberculosis.
In an attempt to clarify the taxonomy of the Mycobacterium avium complex, the relationship between IS1245 RFLP, growth temperature, 16S rDNA signature sequences and the 16S-23S rDNA internally transcribed spacer (ITS) of 160 M. avium-complex isolates from different sources was investigated. All 70 isolates identified as M. avium by INNO-LiPA MYCOBACTERIA (Innogenetics, Belgium), a DNA probe test that targets the ITS, and by 16S rDNA analysis carried multiple copies of IS1245. Three isolates with multiple copies of IS1245 were identified by 16S rDNA analysis as Mycobacterium intracellulare and by LiPA as M. intracellulare (n = 1) and M. avium-intracellulare complex (n = 2). A dichotomy among the M. avium isolates was found on the basis of a C and a G signature nucleotide at position 228 of the 16S-23S rDNA spacer sequence, and this grouping was largely confirmed on the basis of similarities in IS1245 RFLPs. Strains with the characteristic three-band IS1245 'bird-type', as well as M. avium subsp. silvaticum or 'wood-pigeon' strains, invariably contained the C signature. A third characteristic that separated the M. avium bird-type isolates from M. avium isolates from humans and other mammals was growth-temperature tolerance: in contrast to bird isolates, human/porcine isolates grew at 24 and 45 degrees C. Based on differences in IS1245 RFLP, 16S-23S rDNA ITS and growth temperature, M. avium isolates originating from birds should be considered as a separate, evolutionarily conserved taxon. Because all M. avium isolates from birds are invariably of this type, the designation M. avium subsp. avium should be reserved for these bird-type strains. For clarity in the epidemiology of M. avium-related disease, isolates from humans and pigs with multibanded IS1245 RFLPs merit a separate designation. The designation 'M. avium subsp. hominissuis' is suggested for this group of bacteria.
False-positive Mycobacterium tuberculosis cultures are a benchmark for the quality of laboratory processes and patient care. We studied the incidence of false-positive cultures, risk factors, and consequences for patients during the period from 1993 to 2000 in 44 peripheral laboratories in The Netherlands. The national reference laboratory tested 8,889 M. tuberculosis isolates submitted by these laboratories. By definition, a culture was false positive (i) if the DNA fingerprint of the isolate was identical to that of an isolate from another patient processed within 7 days in the same laboratory, (ii) if the isolate was taken from a patient without clinical signs of tuberculosis, and/or (iii) if the false-positive test result was confirmed by the peripheral laboratory and/or the public health tuberculosis officer. We identified 213 false-positive cultures (2.4%). The overall incidence of false-positive cultures decreased over the years, from 3.9% in 1993 to 1.1% in 2000. Laboratories with false-positive cultures more often processed less than 3,000 samples per year (P < 0.05). Among 110 patients for whom a false-positive culture was identified from 1995 to 1999, we found that for 36% of the patients an official tuberculosis notification had been provided to the appropriate public health services, 31% of the patients were treated, 14% of the patients were hospitalized, and a contact investigation had been initiated for 16% of the patients. The application of DNA fingerprinting to identify false-positive M. tuberculosis cultures and the provision of feedback to peripheral laboratories are useful instruments to improve the quality of laboratory processes and the quality of medical care.
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Strains of the Beijing/W genotype family of Mycobacterium tuberculosis have caused large outbreaks of tuberculosis, sometimes involving multidrug resistance. This genetically highly conserved family of M. tuberculosis strains predominates in some geographic areas. We have conducted a systematic review of the published reports on these strains to determine their worldwide distribution, spread, and association with drug resistance. Sixteen studies reported prevalence of Beijing strains defined by spoligotyping; another 10 used other definitions. Beijing strains were most prevalent in Asia but were found worldwide. Associations with drug resistance varied: in New York, Cuba, Estonia, and Vietnam, Beijing strains were strongly associated with drug resistance, but elsewhere the association was weak or absent. Although few reports have measured trends in prevalence, the ubiquity of the Beijing strains and their frequent association with outbreaks and drug resistance underline their importance.
Rare tropical skin diseases are seen more frequently in Western countries because of the increased popularity of visiting tropical regions. A 55-year-old white man developed a painless leg ulcer after traveling in Guatemala and Belize. A mycobacterium was cultured from a biopsy specimen and was identified as Mycobacterium immunogenum by 16S recombinant deoxyribonucleic acid sequence analysis. The leg ulcer healed after 6 months of compression therapy and hydrocolloids; a hypopigmented depressed scar remained.