Merien F, Baranton G, Perolat P
Laboratoire des Leptospires, Institut Pasteur, Nouméa, New Caledonia.
J Infect Dis. 1995 Jul;172(1):281-5. doi: 10.1093/infdis/172.1.281.
Polymerase chain reaction assay (PCR) amplifying a fragment of the Leptospira rrs gene was compared with culture and microagglutination test (MAT) for the diagnosis of leptospirosis in a study of 200 patients with various clinical syndromes compatible with leptospirosis. For the first group of samples tested, PCR identified the 14 cases that later were unequivocally confirmed to be leptospirosis. Thirteen other systemic cases presenting decreasing leptospiral antibody titers were also detected by PCR. The average persistence of leptospiral DNA in serum was estimated at 12 days, with a maximum of 56 days in a culture-confirmed case. The possibility of detecting leptospires in aqueous humor during the ocular complications of the disease was confirmed. The results suggest that PCR is an efficient tool for early diagnosis of leptospirosis during the first 10 days of the disease, especially when the clinical expression of the disease is confusing.
在一项针对200例有各种与钩端螺旋体病相符临床综合征患者的研究中，将扩增钩端螺旋体rrs基因片段的聚合酶链反应检测（PCR）与培养及显微凝集试验（MAT）用于钩端螺旋体病的诊断进行了比较。对于首批检测的样本，PCR鉴定出了后来明确确诊为钩端螺旋体病的14例病例。PCR还检测出了另外13例全身感染且钩端螺旋体抗体滴度下降的病例。血清中钩端螺旋体DNA的平均持续存在时间估计为12天，在一例经培养确诊的病例中最长达56天。证实了在疾病眼部并发症期间可在房水中检测到钩端螺旋体。结果表明，PCR是在疾病的前10天对钩端螺旋体病进行早期诊断的有效工具，尤其是当疾病的临床症状不明确时。
