Use of sodC versus ctrA for real-time polymerase chain reaction-based detection of Neisseria meningitidis in sterile body fluids |
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| Authors: | Fábio Takenori Higa Lucila Okuyama Fukasawa Maria Gisele Gon?alves Maristela Marques Salgado Ana Paula Silva de Lemos Lee H Harrison Priscilla Lima de Oliveira Carla Naufal da Silva Claudio Tavares Sacchi |
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| Affiliation: | 1.Centro de Imunologia;2.Centro de Bacteriologia, Instituto Adolfo Lutz, São Paulo, SP, Brasil;3.Infectious Diseases Epidemiology Research Unit, Graduate School of Public Health, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA |
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| Abstract: | We evaluated the use of a newly described sodC-based real-time-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assay for detecting Neisseria meningitidis in normally sterile sites, such as cerebrospinal fluid and serum. The sodC-based RT-PCR assay has an advantage over ctrA for detecting nongroupable N. meningitidis isolates, which are commonly present in asymptomatic pharyngeal carriage. However, in our study, sodC-based RT-PCR was 7.5% less sensitive than ctrA. Given the public health impact of possible false-negative results due to the use of the sodC target gene alone, sodC-based RT-PCR for the diagnosis of meningococcal meningitis should be used with caution. |
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| Keywords: | sodC-based RT-PCR N. meningitidis diagnostics meningitis |
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