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Journal of Clinical Microbiology, May 2008, p. 1804-1810, Vol. 46, No. 5
0095-1137/08/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/JCM.01800-07
Copyright © 2008, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Rapid Detection of the Mosaic Structure of the Neisseria gonorrhoeae penA Gene, Which Is Associated with Decreased Susceptibilities to Oral Cephalosporins{triangledown}

Susumu Ochiai,1,3* Hiroaki Ishiko,2 Mitsuru Yasuda,3 and Takashi Deguchi3

Advanced Medicine Development Department, R&D and Business Development Segment, Mitsubishi Chemical Medience Corporation, Tokyo 174-8555, Japan,1 R&D and Business Development Segment, Mitsubishi Chemical Medience Corporation, Tokyo 174-8555, Japan,2 Department of Urology, School of Medicine, Gifu University, Gifu 501-1194, Japan3

Received 10 September 2007/ Returned for modification 21 November 2007/ Accepted 11 March 2008

In Neisseria gonorrhoeae, the mosaic structure of the penA gene (encoding penicillin-binding protein 2 [PBP 2]), which is composed of fragments of the penA genes from Neisseria cinerea and Neisseria perflava, has been significantly associated with decreased susceptibility to cephalosporins, particularly oral cephalosporins. The aim of this study was to develop a rapid assay for the detection of mosaic PBP 2 of N. gonorrhoeae by real-time PCR. This assay successfully detected the mosaic penA gene of N. gonorrhoeae, and its sensitivity was ≥101 copies/reaction. Six hundred twenty-one clinical strains were examined by this assay for the presence of mosaic PBP 2, which was detected in 85 (39.4%) of 216 strains from 2002, 69 (40.6%) of 170 strains from 2003, 71 (44.4%) of 160 strains from 2004, and 31 (41.3%) of 75 strains from 2005. The MICs of cephalosporins for strains with the mosaic PBP 2 detected by the assay were statistically higher than those for strains without the mosaic PBP 2. One hundred sixty-six (64.8%) of 256 strains with the mosaic PBP 2 exhibited cefixime MICs of ≥0.5 µg/ml. The emergence and spread of strains with mosaic PBP 2 could be a threat to the cefixime treatment of gonorrhea. This real-time PCR assay for the detection of mosaic PBP 2 of N. gonorrhoeae is thus useful in the prediction of decreased susceptibilities to oral cephalosporins.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Advanced Medicine Development Department, R&D and Business Development Segment, Mitsubishi Chemical Medience Corporation, 3-30-1 Shimura, Itabashi-Ku, Tokyo 174-8555, Japan. Phone: 81-3-5994-2340. Fax: 81-3-5994-2972. E-mail: Ochiai.Susumu{at}mg.medience.co.jp

{triangledown} Published ahead of print on 26 March 2008.

Journal of Clinical Microbiology, May 2008, p. 1804-1810, Vol. 46, No. 5
0095-1137/08/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/JCM.01800-07
Copyright © 2008, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Pandori, M., Barry, P. M., Wu, A., Ren, A., Whittington, W. L. H., Liska, S., Klausner, J. D. (2009). Mosaic Penicillin-Binding Protein 2 in Neisseria gonorrhoeae Isolates Collected in 2008 in San Francisco, California. Antimicrob. Agents Chemother. 53: 4032-4034 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Beernink, P. T., Granoff, D. M. (2009). The modular architecture of meningococcal factor H-binding protein. Microbiology 155: 2873-2883 [Abstract] [Full Text]  


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