Correlation between Ureaplasma subgroup 2 and genitourinary tract disease outcomes revealed by an expanded multilocus sequence typing (eMLST) scheme

PLoS One. 2014 Aug 5;9(8):e104347. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0104347. eCollection 2014.

Abstract

The multilocus sequence typing (MLST) scheme of Ureaplasma based on four housekeeping genes (ftsH, rpL22, valS, and thrS) was described in our previous study; here we introduced an expanded MLST (eMLST) scheme with improved discriminatory power, which was developed by adding two putative virulence genes (ureG and mba-np1) to the original MLST scheme. To evaluate the discriminatory power of eMLST, a total of 14 reference strains of Ureaplasma serovars and 269 clinical strains (134 isolated from symptomatic patients and 135 obtained from asymptomatic persons) were investigated. Our study confirmed that all 14 serotype strains could successfully be differentiated into 14 eMLST STs (eSTs), while some of them could not even be differentiated by the MLST, and a total of 136 eSTs were identified among the clinical isolates we investigated. In addition, phylogenetic analysis indicated that two genetically significantly distant clusters (cluster I and II) were revealed and most clinical isolates were located in cluster I. These findings were in accordance with and further support for the concept of two well-known genetic lineages (Ureaplasma parvum and Ureaplasma urealyticum) in our previous study. Interestingly, although both clusters were associated with clinical manifestation, the sub-group 2 of cluster II had pronounced and adverse effect on patients and might be a potential risk factor for clinical outcomes. In conclusion, the eMLST scheme offers investigators a highly discriminative typing tool that is capable for precise epidemiological investigations and clinical relevance of Ureaplasma.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Alleles
  • Genes, Bacterial
  • Genes, Essential
  • Humans
  • Molecular Sequence Data
  • Multilocus Sequence Typing*
  • Phylogeny
  • Polymorphism, Genetic
  • Serogroup
  • Ureaplasma / classification*
  • Ureaplasma / genetics*
  • Ureaplasma / pathogenicity
  • Ureaplasma Infections / diagnosis*
  • Ureaplasma Infections / microbiology*
  • Urinary Tract Infections / diagnosis*
  • Urinary Tract Infections / microbiology*
  • Virulence / genetics

Associated data

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Grants and funding

This study was supported by grants from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant no. 81171629), Zhejiang Provincial Natural Science Foundation (grant no. Y2080234), and Zhejiang Provincial Health Bureau Foundation (grant no. 2012KYA115, 2013KYA216 and 2014PYA011). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.