Open AccessMycobacterium leprae isolates from different sources have identical sequences of the spacer region between the 16S and 23S ribosomal RNA genes
Author(s) -
M. Y. L. De Wit,
Paul Klatser
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
microbiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.019
H-Index - 179
eISSN - 1465-2080
pISSN - 1350-0872
DOI - 10.1099/13500872-140-8-1983
Subject(s) - mycobacterium leprae , biology , single strand conformation polymorphism , 23s ribosomal rna , ribosomal rna , gene , 16s ribosomal rna , internal transcribed spacer , genetics , genotype , ribosomal dna , spacer dna , polymerase chain reaction , microbiology and biotechnology , leprosy , rna , phylogenetics , immunology , ribosome
To test for genotypic variations between different isolates of Mycobacterium leprae, the causative agent of leprosy, the 282 bp spacer region between the 16S and 23S rRNA genes was amplified using PCR, and submitted to single-strand conformation polymorphism (SSCP) analysis. The procedure was optimized using four modified spacer fragments, containing mutations at one, three, four and six positions, respectively. Seventy-five M. leprae isolates from different sources, including isolates from leprosy patients, healthy individuals, armadillos and mouse footpads were identical in the SSCP analysis. DNA sequencing and restriction enzyme analysis performed on four and 40 samples, respectively, confirmed the results obtained with SSCP analysis.