title: Molecular analysis of Francisella tularensis subspecies tularensis and holarctica.
abstract: Rapid methods are needed for public health and military applications to specifically identify Francisella tularensis, the causative agent of tularemia in humans. A comparative analysis of the capabilities of multiple technologies was performed using a well-defined set of organisms to determine which approach would provide the most information in the shortest time. High-resolution molecular techniques, including pulsed-field gel electrophoresis, amplified fragment length polymorphism, and ribotyping, provided subspecies level identification within approximately 24 hours after obtaining an isolate, whereas multilocus variable number tandem repeat analysis with 8 or 25 targets provided strain level discrimination within about 12 hours. In contrast, Raman spectroscopy provided species level identification in 10 minutes but could not differentiate between subspecies tularensis and holarctica.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology and Microbiology, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE 68198, USA.
authors.forename: P D
authors.initials: PD
authors.lastname: Fey
authors.forename: Major M P
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Dempsey
authors.forename: M E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Olson
authors.forename: M S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Chrustowski
authors.forename: J L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Engle
authors.forename: J J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Jay
authors.forename: M E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Dobson
authors.forename: K S
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Kalasinsky
authors.forename: A A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Shea
authors.forename: P C
authors.initials: PC
authors.lastname: Iwen
authors.forename: R C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Wickert
authors.forename: S C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Francesconi
authors.forename: R M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Crawford
authors.forename: S H
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Hinrichs
mesh_terms: D054458:Amplified Fragment Length Polymorphism Analysis; D000818:Animals; D015373:Bacterial Typing Techniques; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000032:analysis*; D016521:Electrophoresis, Gel, Pulsed-Field; D005604:Francisella tularensis / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006801:Humans; D025202:Molecular Diagnostic Techniques; D021521:Ribotyping; D013059:Spectrum Analysis, Raman / Q000379:methods; D014406:Tularemia / Q000382:microbiology*
chemical_list: D004269:DNA, Bacterial