Genotypic diversity among isoniazid-resistant isolates of Mycobacterium tuberculosis from Rashid hospital in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
OBJECTIVE
To perform molecular fingerprinting for strain relatedness among isoniazid-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates recovered from tuberculosis (TB) patients in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).


METHODS
Thirty-two consecutive isoniazid-resistant M. tuberculosis strains isolated from TB patients (4 natives and 28 expatriates) at Rashid Hospital, Dubai, UAE were analyzed. The typing was carried out by touchdown double-repetitive-element PCR (DRE-PCR). The status of R463 or L463 polymorphism and the presence of S315T mutation in the katG gene were also determined for isolates exhibiting cluster pattern in DRE-PCR.


RESULTS
All the 32 isolates (28 from expatriate patients and 4 from UAE nationals) exhibited 21 distinct patterns in DRE-PCR with 20 of 32 isolates exhibiting unique patterns and the remaining 12 exhibiting cluster 'A' pattern. All the isolates (19 of 19) yielding two or more DNA fragments in DRE-PCR were unique strains. The genotypic heterogeneity among 10 of the 12 cluster isolates was suggested by the varying susceptibility of these isolates to anti-TB drugs, presence of R463 or L463 polymorphism in the katG gene and the presence or absence of S315T mutation in the katG gene.


CONCLUSIONS
The genotypic diversity among isoniazid-resistant M. tuberculosis isolates mostly recovered from expatriate patients indicates that most expatriates were infected with a unique strain imported, most likely, from their country of origin and that their latent infection was reactivated in UAE.
Ahmad
Suhail
S
Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Kuwait University, Kuwait. suhail_ab@hsc.edu.kw
Fares
Esther
E
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000995:Antitubercular Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D016172:DNA Fingerprinting; D024881:Drug Resistance, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics*; D005260:Female; D014644:Genetic Variation / Q000235:genetics*; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D007538:Isoniazid / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009169:Mycobacterium tuberculosis / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics*; D014376:Tuberculosis / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000635:transmission; D014479:United Arab Emirates
D000995:Antitubercular Agents; D007538:Isoniazid