Gaydos C A, Quinn T C, Eiden J J
Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland 21205.
J Clin Microbiol. 1992 Apr;30(4):796-800. doi: 10.1128/jcm.30.4.796-800.1992.
Chlamydia pneumoniae is an important cause of respiratory disease in humans, but diagnosis of C. pneumoniae is hindered by difficulties in the in vitro growth of the organism. In order to improve detection and identification, we recently developed a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay which uses oligonucleotide primers specific for C. pneumoniae. The nucleic acid sequence was determined for the 16S rRNA of C. pneumoniae, and regions in which C. pneumoniae differed from both Chlamydia psittaci and Chlamydia trachomatis were identified. Oligonucleotide primers corresponding to these unique regions were then synthesized and used in a PCR for the detection of C. pneumoniae. The C. pneumoniae-specific primers permitted the identification of six isolates of C. pneumoniae, but no reaction was observed with the 15 serovars of C. trachomatis or two strains of C. psittaci. PCR should prove to be valuable in confirming the identification of C. pneumoniae and in the diagnosis of C. pneumoniae infections.
肺炎衣原体是人类呼吸道疾病的重要病因，但由于该生物体在体外生长困难，阻碍了肺炎衣原体的诊断。为了改进检测和鉴定方法，我们最近开发了一种聚合酶链反应（PCR）检测法，该方法使用了针对肺炎衣原体的寡核苷酸引物。测定了肺炎衣原体16S rRNA的核酸序列，并鉴定了肺炎衣原体与鹦鹉热衣原体和沙眼衣原体不同的区域。然后合成了与这些独特区域相对应的寡核苷酸引物，并用于PCR检测肺炎衣原体。肺炎衣原体特异性引物能够鉴定出6株肺炎衣原体分离株，但未观察到与15个沙眼衣原体血清型或2株鹦鹉热衣原体的反应。PCR在确认肺炎衣原体的鉴定和诊断肺炎衣原体感染方面应具有重要价值。
