Publication: Molecular detection and speciation of pathogenic Leptospira spp. in blood from patients with culture-negative leptospirosis
Accepted Date
2011-12-13
Issued Date
2011-12-13
Copyright Date
2011
Resource Type
Language
eng
ISSN
1471-2334 (electronic)
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Mahidol University
Rights Holder(s)
BMC infectious diseases
Bibliographic Citation
Boonsilp S, Thaipadungpanit J, Amornchai P, Wuthiekanun V, Chierakul W, Limmathurotsakul D, et al. Molecular detection and speciation of pathogenic Leptospira spp. in blood from patients with culture-negative leptospirosis. BMC Infect Dis. 2011 Dec 13;11:338.
Suggested Citation
Siriphan Boonsilp, Janjira Thaipadungpanit, จันทร์จิรา ไทยผดุงพานิช, Premjit Amornchai, เปรมจิตต์ อมรชัย, Vanaporn Wuthiekanun, Wirongrong Chierakul, Direk Limmathurotsakul, ดิเรก ลิ้มมธุรสกุล, Day, Nicholas P., Peacock, Sharon J. Molecular detection and speciation of pathogenic Leptospira spp. in blood from patients with culture-negative leptospirosis. Boonsilp S, Thaipadungpanit J, Amornchai P, Wuthiekanun V, Chierakul W, Limmathurotsakul D, et al. Molecular detection and speciation of pathogenic Leptospira spp. in blood from patients with culture-negative leptospirosis. BMC Infect Dis. 2011 Dec 13;11:338.. doi:10.1186/1471-2334-11-338 Retrieved from: https://repository.li.mahidol.ac.th/handle/20.500.14594/740
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Title
Molecular detection and speciation of pathogenic Leptospira spp. in blood from patients with culture-negative leptospirosis
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Abstract
BACKGROUND: Pathogenic Leptospira spp. present in the blood of patients with
leptospirosis during the first week of symptoms can be detected using culture or
PCR. A proportion of patients who are positive by PCR are negative by culture.
Leptospira spp. are fastidious bacteria, and we hypothesized that a
false-negative culture result may represent infection with a distinct bacterial
subset that fail to grow in standard culture medium.
METHODS: We evaluated our hypothesis during a prospective study of 418
consecutive patients presenting to a hospital in northeast Thailand with an acute
febrile illness. Admission blood samples were taken for Leptospira culture and
PCR. A single tube nested PCR that amplified a region of the rrs gene was
developed and applied, amplicons sequenced and a phylogenetic tree reconstructed.
RESULTS: 39/418 (9%) patients were culture-positive for Leptospira spp., and
81/418 (19%) patients were culture-negative but rrs PCR-positive. The species
associated with culture-positive leptospirosis (37 L. interrogans and 2 L.
borgpetersenii) were comparable to those associated with culture-negative,
PCR-positive leptospirosis (76 L. interrogans, 4 L. borgpetersenii, 1
unidentified, possibly new species).
CONCLUSION: Molecular speciation failed to identify a unique bacterial subset in
patients with culture-negative, PCR-positive leptospirosis. The rate of
false-negative culture was high, and we speculate that antibiotic pre-treatment
is the most likely explanation for this.