Use of genome selected repeated sequences increases the sensitivity of PCR detection of Tropheryma whipplei.
The availability of the Tropheryma whipplei genome offers the putative possibility of choosing logical DNA targets. We applied a PCR assay (targeting repeated sequences of T. whipplei) to samples from patients with Whipple's disease and to those from members of a control group. When compared to the results seen with regular PCR, the sensitivity of repeat PCR was significantly enhanced (P = 0.02) without alteration of its specificity.
Fenollar
Florence
F
Unité des Rickettsies, CNRS UMR 6020, IFR 48, Faculté de médecine, Université de la Méditerranée, 13385 Marseille cedex 05, France.
Fournier
Pierre-Edouard
PE
Robert
Catherine
C
Raoult
Didier
D
D000192:Actinomycetales / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D016680:Genome, Bacterial; D006801:Humans; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods*; D012091:Repetitive Sequences, Nucleic Acid; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D008061:Whipple Disease / Q000382:microbiology*