Multilocus enzyme electrophoresis for identification and typing of Treponema hyodysenteriae and related spirochaetes.

An assessment was made of multilocus enzyme electrophoresis as a means of identifying and typing spirochaetes isolated from pigs. Using five enzyme systems, 36 isolates from Australia, the U.K. and the U.S.A. were divided into 12 electrophoretic types or multilocus genotypes, comprising four major, genetically distinct groups. All 26 isolates of Treponema hyodysenteriae fell into one group, members of which showed relatively little genetic diversity. Ten isolates of non-pathogenic spirochaetes fell into three genetically different groups. Although the technique was capable of typing organisms within the groups, it was not always as discriminatory as DNA-restriction endonuclease analysis. Examination of additional enzyme loci should increase the sensitivity of the method for typing and for overall assessment of genetic relationships between spirochaetes.