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Journal of Clinical Microbiology, December 1998, p. 3605-3608, Vol. 36, No. 12
0095-1137/98/$04.00+0
Copyright © 1998, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.

PCR-Enzyme Immunoassay for Detection of Streptococcus pneumoniae DNA in Cerebrospinal Fluid Samples from Patients With Culture-Negative Meningitis

Thomas Cherian,1,* M. K. Lalitha,2 Anand Manoharan,2 Kurien Thomas,3 Robert H. Yolken,4 and Mark C. Steinhoff4,5

Departments of Child Health,1 Clinical Microbiology,2 and Clinical Epidemiology,3 Christian Medical College & Hospital, Vellore, India, and Departments of Pediatrics4 and International Health,5 Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland

Received 12 January 1998/Returned for modification 21 March 1998/Accepted 1 September 1998

A PCR-based assay was developed to amplify a conserved region of the pneumococcal autolysin gene. The amplified product was labelled with digoxigenin-labelled dUTP and was detected with a biotin-labelled probe in an enzyme immunoassay (EIA). The assay was initially tested with suspensions of various serotypes of Streptococcus pneumoniae and other gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria and was then applied to cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) specimens from patients with meningitis and those with other neurological disorders. The assay detected all the serotypes of S. pneumoniae tested, whereas all the other bacterial strains tested were negative. Seven of the 8 CSF specimens positive for pneumococcus by culture or latex agglutination (LA) were positive by PCR-EIA, whereas all 10 specimens positive for other organisms were negative. Among 11 patients with clinically diagnosed meningitis but with negative culture and LA results, 5 were positive by PCR-EIA. The assay was negative for all but one patient without meningitis; it was positive with the CSF from a child with immunodeficiency and pneumococcal abscesses on the scalp. PCR-EIA is a useful tool for the diagnosis of meningitis, especially when culture and LA are negative because of prior antibiotic treatment.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of Child Health, Christian Medical College & Hospital, Vellore 632004, India. Phone: 91 416 22102, ext. 2130. Fax: 91 416 32103 or 91 416 32035. E-mail: cherian{at}child.cmc.ernet.in.

Journal of Clinical Microbiology, December 1998, p. 3605-3608, Vol. 36, No. 12
0095-1137/98/$04.00+0
Copyright © 1998, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.


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