Characterization of Leptospira isolates from serovar hardjo by ribotyping, arbitrarily primed PCR, and mapped restriction site polymorphisms.

Leptospira serovar hardjo isolates of the hardjoprajitno and hardjobovis genotypes were characterized by ribotyping, arbitrarily primed PCR (AP-PCR) fingerprinting, and the study of mapped restriction site polymorphisms (MRSPs) in rrs and rrl genes. After restriction of chromosomal DNA with BglII, EcoRI, or HindIII, each genotype was individualized with a distinct ribotype. The fingerprints produced by AP-PCR with seven primers clearly separated the two groups; primers KF and RSP produced species-specific products which assigned hardjoprajitno and hardjobovis isolates to the species L. interrogans sensu stricto and L. borgpetersenii, respectively. Furthermore, AP-PCR fingerprints gave evidence of a considerable genomic heterogeneity at the strain level among the hardjobovis group. Conversely, the hardjoprajitno group was homogeneous. MRSP profiles in ribosomal genes indicated that hardjoprajitno and hardjobovis isolates belonged to L. interrogans MRSP group B and L. borgpetersenii group C, respectively. AP-PCR and determination of MRSPs in ribosomal genes proved to be quick and reliable methods for typing Leptospira strains and for studying intraspecific population structures.