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Journal of Clinical Microbiology, June 2006, p. 2093-2098, Vol. 44, No. 6
0095-1137/06/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/JCM.00278-06
Copyright © 2006, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Identification of a Haarlem Genotype-Specific Single Nucleotide Polymorphism in the mgtC Virulence Gene of Mycobacterium tuberculosis

Eric Alix,1 Sylvain Godreuil,2 and Anne-Béatrice Blanc-Potard1*

INSERM U431, Avenir Team, UFR de Médecine, CS 83021, Avenue Kennedy, 30908 Nîmes Cedex 02, France,1 GEMI, UMR CNRS-IRD 9926, Centre IRD de Montpellier, France2

Received 8 February 2006/ Returned for modification 31 March 2006/ Accepted 5 April 2006

MgtC is a virulence factor common to several intracellular pathogens, including Mycobacterium tuberculosis, that might have been acquired through horizontal gene transfer. In the present study, we investigated the polymorphism of mgtC in clinical isolates representative of the main epidemic groups of M. tuberculosis. MgtC appears to have a low polymorphism rate in M. tuberculosis that consists exclusively of nonsynonymous mutations. We identified a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) at mgtC codon 182 (mgtC182) specifically associated with the Haarlem genotype. A simple PCR assay, called the "on/off switch assay," using phosphorothioate-modified primers and Pfu polymerase allowed us to distinguish Haarlem from non-Haarlem strains based on the mgtC182 SNP. The amino acid change (H182R) associated with the mgtC182 SNP in Haarlem strains does not appear to procure a selective advantage. Our results offer a simple and rapid tool to distinguish between Haarlem and non-Haarlem strains. In addition, the on/off switch assay, which allows the detection of SNPs on chromosomal DNA and M. tuberculosis cultures, provides a novel approach for the screening of known SNPs in M. tuberculosis.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, Unité 431, Avenir Team, UFR de Médecine, CS 83021, Ave. J. F. Kennedy, 30908 NIMES Cedex 02, France. Phone: 33 4 66 02 81 47. Fax: 33 4 66 02 81 48. E-mail: ablancpotard{at}univ-montp1.fr.

Journal of Clinical Microbiology, June 2006, p. 2093-2098, Vol. 44, No. 6
0095-1137/06/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/JCM.00278-06
Copyright © 2006, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



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