EndoNUclease Heteroduplex Cleavage Typing (ENUHCT), a new technique for rapid typing of bacterial isolates in the context of nosocomial outbreaks: proof of concept with Bacillus cereus.
Bacillus cereus is a Gram-positive, spore-forming bacterium implicated in foodborne illnesses and severe nosocomial infections, particularly in immunocompromised patients. In France, B. cereus has been associated with neonatal infections, including septicemia and central nervous system infections, with a significant mortality rate. The bacterium's spores are highly resistant to disinfectants, contributing to hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) through environmental contamination. Current typing methods, such as Multi-Locus Sequence Typing (MLST), are time-consuming and not routinely performed in clinical settings, limiting real-time outbreak management.   This study evaluates the EndoNUclease Heteroduplex Cleavage Typing (ENUHCT) as a rapid alternative to MLST for B. cereus strain typing. ENUHCT identifies single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) by cleaving mismatched DNA heteroduplexes, enabling rapid discrimination between strains.