FIG. 2.
Quantification of B. vulgatus adherent to mucosal biopsy specimens from healthy persons. DNA isolated from biopsy specimens was used in a 5′ nuclease PCR assay with the primer-probe set for B. vulgatus. A range of known concentrations of bacteria was amplified and plotted (black crosses) as a standard curve as a reference for the quantification of B. vulgatus in mucosal biopsy specimens. For quantification, a standard curve was obtained by plotting the points of the fluorescent signals that cross the threshold line (Ct values). Each dot represents the result of an amplification of DNA from a mucosal biopsy specimen. A mean equivalent of 4.2 × 106 B. vulgatus CFU was found in mucosal biopsy specimens. R was equal to 0.999, and the slope was −3.412.