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Journal of Clinical Microbiology, March 1999, p. 538-543, Vol. 37, No. 3
Department of Dermatology, First Hospital of
Beijing Medical University, Beijing 100034, People's Republic of
China,1 and
Centre for Infectious
Diseases and Microbiology, Institute of Clinical Pathology and
Medical Research, Westmead, New South Wales,
Australia2
Received 20 July 1998/Returned for modification 20 August
1998/Accepted 2 November 1998
Ureaplasma urealyticum is a causative agent of
nongonococcal urethritis and is implicated in the pathogenesis of
several other diseases. The species is divided into 14 serovars and two
biovars, of which biovar 1 is most commonly isolated from clinical
specimens. Reported associations between individual serovars and
diseases have been difficult to confirm because of practical
difficulties with serotyping. The multiple-banded antigen (MBA) is the
predominant U. urealyticum antigen recognized during
infections in humans and probably has a significant role in virulence.
The 5' end of the MBA gene is relatively conserved but contains biovar,
and possibly serovar, specificity. The 5' ends of the MBA genes of standard strains of U. urealyticum biovar 1, consisting of
serovars 1, 3, 6, and 14, were amplified, cloned into pUC19, and
sequenced to identify serovar-specific differences. The 5' end of the
MBA gene sequence of serovar 3 was identical with the previously
published sequence and differed by only three bases from that of
serovar 14. Significant differences between the MBA gene sequences
allowed biovar 1 to be divided into two subgroups, containing serovars 3/14 and serovars 1 and 6, respectively, using primers UMS-125-UMA269 and UMS-125-UMA269'. Serovars 1 and 6 were distinguished by
restriction enzyme analysis of the amplicon and/or by PCR specific for
serovar 6. These methods were used to identify and type U. urealyticum in 185 (46.3%) of 400 genital specimens from women.
Biovar 1 was detected in 89.2% and biovar 2 in 18.3% of positive
specimens. Of 165 specimens containing U. urealyticum
biovar 1, 22.2% contained more than one serovar and 46.7, 46.1, and
25.5% contained serovars 1, 3/14, and 6, respectively. U. urealyticum was found in a significantly higher proportion of
pregnant women than in sex workers and other women attending a sexually
transmissible diseases clinic (P < 0.01). The methods
described are relatively rapid, practicable, and specific for
serotyping isolates and for direct detection and identification of
individual serovars in clinical specimens containing U. urealyticum biovar 1.
0095-1137/99/$04.00+0
Copyright © 1999, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.
Comparative Analysis and Serovar-Specific
Identification of Multiple-Banded Antigen Genes of
Ureaplasma urealyticum Biovar 1
*
Corresponding author. Mailing address: Centre for
Infectious Diseases and Microbiology, Institute of Clinical Pathology
and Medical Research, Westmead Hospital, Darcy Rd., Westmead, New South
Wales, 2145 Australia. Phone: (612) 9845 6255. Fax: (612) 9893 8659. E-mail: lyng{at}cidm.wsahs.nsw.gov.au.
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