title: Detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in sputum samples by polymerase chain reaction using a simplified procedure.
abstract: A repetitive sequence of Mycobacterium tuberculosis DNA was amplified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR), from sputum samples, for the diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis. The method of heating the sample in a boiling water bath to break down the bacterial cell wall and to release the DNA was compared with that of enzymatic lysis of bacteria and then phenol-chloroform extraction of DNA. Heating the sample was the better method with a sensitivity of approximately 10 microorganisms. A total of 78 sputum specimens prepared by heating were examined by PCR, and the results were compared with the results of acid-fast stained smears, cultures, and clinical data. M. tuberculosis was detected by PCR in all smear- and culture-positive and smear-negative, culture-positive cases. Additionally, PCR was capable of detecting four of nine cases which were smear and culture negative but clinically suspected of tuberculosis. DNA amplification by PCR is a sensitive and specific method for the diagnosis of tuberculosis, and with this simplified DNA isolation procedure it can be used in routine clinical practice.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, School of Medicine, Hacettepe University, Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kocagöz
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Yilmaz
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ozkara
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kocagöz
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hayran
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sachedeva
authors.forename: H F
authors.initials: HF
authors.lastname: Chambers
mesh_terms: D001431:Bacteriological Techniques; D001483:Base Sequence; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D006801:Humans; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009169:Mycobacterium tuberculosis / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012091:Repetitive Sequences, Nucleic Acid; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D013183:Sputum / Q000382:microbiology*; D014397:Tuberculosis, Pulmonary / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000382:microbiology
chemical_list: D004269:DNA, Bacterial