title: Association of mycoplasma and human immunodeficiency virus infection: detection of amplified Mycoplasma fermentans DNA in blood.
abstract: A cross-sectional study was undertaken to determine the prevalence of Mycoplasma fermentans infection in patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection using polymerase chain reaction methodology. Targeted M. fermentans DNA sequences could be amplified from the DNA extracted from the blood of 6 (11%) of 55 HIV-seropositive patients but from none of 26 HIV-seronegative subjects at low risk for HIV infection (P = .17). There was no correlation between M. fermentans infection and HIV clinical stage. There was a nonsignificant trend toward an association between M. fermentans infection and a history of syphilis. Infection with M. fermentans may occur more commonly in HIV-infected patients; however, a role as a copathogen or opportunistic infection was not established in this study.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, National Naval Medical Center, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland.
authors.forename: R E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Hawkins
authors.forename: L S
authors.initials: LS
authors.lastname: Rickman
authors.forename: S H
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Vermund
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Carl
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001483:Base Sequence; D015139:Blotting, Southern; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D015342:DNA Probes / Q000737:chemistry; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000097:blood* / Q000737:chemistry; D004587:Electrophoresis, Agar Gel; D005260:Female; D005784:Gene Amplification; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000150:complications*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009175:Mycoplasma Infections / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology; D016858:Mycoplasma fermentans / Q000235:genetics*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D015995:Prevalence; D013587:Syphilis / Q000150:complications
chemical_list: D015342:DNA Probes; D004269:DNA, Bacterial