Limitations of Pulsed‐Field Gel Electrophoresis for Analysis of Yersinia enterocolitica Isolates

• Published in: Zoonoses and public health Vol. 61; no. 6; pp. 405 - 410
• Main Authors: Gilpin, B. J, Robson, B, Lin, S, Hudson, J. A, Weaver, L, Dufour, M, Strydom, H
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Germany Blackwell 01-09-2014; Blackwell Publishing Ltd
• Subjects: Bacterial Typing Techniques - methods; Biotype; biotypes; Disease Outbreaks; DNA, Bacterial - genetics; Electrophoresis, Gel, Pulsed-Field - methods; Epidemiology; gel electrophoresis; Genotype; Genotype & phenotype; genotyping; Humans; limitations; New Zealand; New Zealand - epidemiology; pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE); Yersinia enterocolitica; Yersinia enterocolitica - genetics; Yersinia enterocolitica - isolation & purification; Yersinia Infections - epidemiology; Yersinia Infections - microbiology; yersiniosis; Zoonoses; New Zealand; New Zealand; Yersinia enterocolitica; Biotype; pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE); limitations
• ISSN: 1863-1959; 1863-2378
• DOI: 10.1111/zph.12085

This study describes the analysis of 432 isolates of Yersinia enterocolitica by pulsed‐field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). PFGE had a high level of discrimination with biotype 1A isolates (Simpson's Diversity Index 0.997), but with the clinically important biotypes 2, 3 and 4, the discriminatory ability of PFGE was so low as to severely limit its usefulness (DI <0.6). For biotypes 2, 3 and 4, 79% or more of isolates of each biotype were of just three different PFGE profiles. Because of this, four known outbreaks of yersiniosis would not have been identified by PFGE analysis. However, a previously unrecognized potential outbreak of yersiniosis caused by biotype 4 isolates was identified on the basis of a rare PFGE genotype with spatial and temporal clustering. We conclude that PFGE has a very limited application to the genotyping of Y. enterocolitica biotypes 2, 3 and 4, and inferences based on finding indistinguishable PFGE profiles among cases or between cases and sources need to be substantiated using alternative typing tools, or strong epidemiological evidence.