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Journal of Clinical Microbiology, March 1998, p. 614-617, Vol. 36, No. 3
0095-1137/98/$04.00+0
Copyright © 1998, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.

Genus Level Identification of Mycobacteria from Clinical Specimens by Using an Easy-To-Handle Mycobacterium-Specific PCR Assay

Fritz Stauffer,1,* Heinrich Haber,2 Armin Rieger,3 Robert Mutschlechner,4 Petra Hasenberger,1 Vincent J. Tevere,5 and Karen K. Y. Young6

Federal Public Health Laboratory,1 Department of Internal Medicine, Center for Respiratory Diseases,2 and Division of Immunology, Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Department of Dermatology, University of Vienna Medical School,3 Vienna, and Department of Lung Diseases, Hospital of Grimmenstein, Grimmenstein,4 Austria; Roche Molecular Systems, Branchburg Township, New Jersey 08876-37715; and Roche Molecular Systems, Alameda, California 945016

Received 29 May 1997/Returned for modification 29 August 1997/Accepted 5 December 1997

An easy-to-handle Mycobacterium-specific PCR assay for detection of the presence of a wide range of mycobacterial species in clinical samples was evaluated. The performance of the genus probe was compared with the performance of probes specific for Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Mycobacterium avium and with that of standard culture. In addition, the utility of an internal control in monitoring amplification inhibitors was studied. Of 545 respiratory and 325 nonrespiratory specimens (a total of 870 specimens), 58 (6.7%) showed the presence of amplification inhibitors, as determined by a negative result for the internal control. Of these 58 specimens, 31 (53%) were stool specimens; other material, even citrate blood after lysis of erythrocytes, did not pose a problem with regard to inhibition of PCR amplification. Eighty-one of the remaining 812 specimens had a positive Mycobacterium culture result. Of these culture-positive specimens, 58 (71.6%) showed a positive result with the Mycobacterium genus-specific probe. Seventy-two samples had a positive result with the Mycobacterium-specific probe but a negative culture result. Of these 72 samples, 26 samples were regarded as true positive, either because the M. tuberculosis- or M. avium-specific probe was also positive at the same time or because other specimens from the same patient taken at the same time were culture positive. The sensitivity of the Mycobacterium-specific probe was 78.5% and the specificity was 93.5%. This study showed that pretesting of clinical specimens for mycobacteria to the genus level with a Mycobacterium-specific probe offers the routine clinical laboratory the possibility of detecting tuberculous and nontuberculous mycobacteria with one test. Furthermore, specimens testing positive with the genus-specific probe can be immediately identified with species-specific probes.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Federal Public Health Laboratory, Waehringerstrasse 25a, P.O. Box 91, 1096 Vienna, Austria. Phone: (43 1) 405 15 57. Fax: (43 1) 402 39 00.

Journal of Clinical Microbiology, March 1998, p. 614-617, Vol. 36, No. 3
0095-1137/98/$04.00+0
Copyright © 1998, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.


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