An evaluation of ERIC PCR and AP PCR fingerprinting for discriminating Salmonella serotypes.

PCR fingerprints of 89 Salmonella isolates belonging to 22 serotypes were obtained using ERIC PCR (enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus PCR) and AP PCR (arbitrarily primed PCR) to evaluate the ability of different fingerprinting methods to differentiate or identify serotypes and subtypes. Fingerprints were scored and comparisons were made using a computer program. ERIC PCR produced a unique, complex fingerprint for almost every isolate, but these fingerprints did not identify serotypes. One AP PCR primer also produced complex fingerprints that discriminated among isolates, but again did not identify serotypes. A second AP PCR primer produced simple patterns, including one pattern shared by 35 isolates from 12 different serotypes. In general, the three sets of PCR fingerprints distinguished isolates, but were not correlated with serotypes. Matching fingerprints from different gels by computer was difficult, since similarities were based on both intense and faint bands. In addition, this study suggests that dendrograms created from PCR fingerprints should be viewed with caution.