Referenced in: none

Automatically associated channels: Kir2.3

Title: Molecular characterization of invasive serogroup Y Neisseria meningitidis strains isolated in the Latin America region.

Authors: Raquel Abad, Clara I Agudelo, M Cristina Brandileone, Grettel Chanto, Jean Marc Gabastou, Juan Carlos Hormazabal, M Cecilia O Gorla, Aurora Maldonado, Jaime Moreno, Erwan Muros-Le Rouzic, Robert Lersch, Mabel Regueira, Celia Salcedo, Cecilia Sorhouet, Julio A Vázquez

Journal, date & volume: J. Infect., 2009 Aug , 59, 104-14

PubMed link: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19576638

Abstract
To improve the understanding of serogroup Y invasive meningococcal disease (IMD) in Latin America, particularly IMD molecular epidemiology; 166 Y serogroup isolates received at the National Reference Laboratories of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, and Costa Rica during 2000-2006 were characterized by their molecular markers.This analysis included serological assays to determine serogroup/serotype/serosubtype, DNA sequencing and genotyping of the porB and/or porA genes, multilocus sequence typing (MLST) and fetA allele determination.Sixteen different antigenic combinations were observed. Sixty-two (37.3%) isolates were NT:P1.5 and 36 (21.7%) isolates were 14:NST. Thirty-two different STs appeared, but 3 STs (ST-1624, ST-23, and ST-5770) accounted for 69.9% (116) of the strains. Most of the IMD isolates belonged to the ST-23, ST-167 clonal complexes or the group composed by ST-5770 and related STs.Isolates obtained in Colombia and Costa Rica were similar to that of the United States, in that most sequence types belonged to the ST-23 clonal complex. IMD isolates found in Argentina appear to be the result of an independent event and did not spread from nearby countries, being the sequence type ST-1624 (ST-167 clonal complex) the most frequently found. We were unable to correlate an antigenic shift of outer membrane proteins with an increase of serogroup Y meningococcal cases in our collection of isolates.