Skip to main content
PMC home page
Epidemiology and Infection logoLink to Epidemiology and Infection
. 1991 Feb;106(1):143–150. doi: 10.1017/s0950268800056508

Genetic relationships among strains of Neisseria meningitidis causing disease in Italy, 1984-7.

P Mastrantonio 1, M E Congiu 1, R K Selander 1, D A Caugant 1
PMCID: PMC2271853  PMID: 1899647

Abstract

Since 1984 a change in the epidemiological pattern of meningococcal disease in Italy has occurred with a predominance of Neisseria meningitidis of serogroup C (76%), serotype 2a and a high proportion of strains resistant to sulphonamides (71%). In order to understand better the epidemiology of the group C N. meningitidis strains responsible for the disease over the last years in Italy, we studied the genetic features of phenotypically closely related strains, by enzyme electrophoresis. The results showed that the genetic and the phenotypic characteristics of the 57 strains studied were similar, suggesting that spread of a single clone during recent years in our country. This result is in agreement with the circulation of strains typical of epidemic situations, despite the decreasing incidence of meningococcal disease in Italy.

Full text

PDF
150

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Albertoni F., Chierchini P., Ippolito G., Perucci C., Occhionero M., Mastrantonio Gianfrilli P. Surveillance of meningococcal meningitis in the Latium region, Italy 1984-1985. Microbiologica. 1987 Jan;10(1):93–101. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Bøvre K., Frøholm L. O., Gaustad P., Holten E., Høiby E. A. Some agent characteristics and their coexistence related to occurrence and severity of systemic meningococcal disease in Norway, Winter 1981-1982. NIPH Ann. 1983 Jun;6(1):75–84. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Caugant D. A., Bøvre K., Gaustad P., Bryn K., Holten E., Høiby E. A., Frøholm L. O. Multilocus genotypes determined by enzyme electrophoresis of Neisseria meningitidis isolated from patients with systemic disease and from healthy carriers. J Gen Microbiol. 1986 Mar;132(3):641–652. doi: 10.1099/00221287-132-3-641. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Caugant D. A., Frøholm L. O., Bøvre K., Holten E., Frasch C. E., Mocca L. F., Zollinger W. D., Selander R. K. Intercontinental spread of a genetically distinctive complex of clones of Neisseria meningitidis causing epidemic disease. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1986 Jul;83(13):4927–4931. doi: 10.1073/pnas.83.13.4927. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Caugant D. A., Mocca L. F., Frasch C. E., Frøholm L. O., Zollinger W. D., Selander R. K. Genetic structure of Neisseria meningitidis populations in relation to serogroup, serotype, and outer membrane protein pattern. J Bacteriol. 1987 Jun;169(6):2781–2792. doi: 10.1128/jb.169.6.2781-2792.1987. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Caugant D. A., Zollinger W. D., Mocca L. F., Frasch C. E., Whittam T. S., Frøholm L. O., Selander R. K. Genetic relationships and clonal population structure of serotype 2 strains of Neisseria meningitidis. Infect Immun. 1987 Jun;55(6):1503–1512. doi: 10.1128/iai.55.6.1503-1512.1987. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Frasch C. E., Chapman S. S. Classification of Neisseria meningitidis group B into distinct serotypes. 3. Application of a new bactericidal-inhibition technique to distribution of serotypes among cases and carriers. J Infect Dis. 1973 Feb;127(2):149–154. doi: 10.1093/infdis/127.2.149. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Frasch C. E., Chapman S. S. Classification of Neisseria meningitidis group B into distinct serotypes. I. Serological typing by a microbactericidal method. Infect Immun. 1972 Jan;5(1):98–102. doi: 10.1128/iai.5.1.98-102.1972. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Martin P. M., Rouillon N., Guibourdenche M., Riou J. Y. Serotyping of 153 group B and C meningococci isolated in France, 1981-1982. Eur J Clin Microbiol. 1983 Dec;2(6):591–593. doi: 10.1007/BF02016572. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Mastrantonio P., Congiu M. E., Occhionero M., Stroffolini T. Genomic fingerprints and phenotypic characteristics of strains of Neisseria meningitidis causing disease in Italy. Microbiologica. 1990 Apr;13(2):109–113. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Mocca L. F., del Real G., Frasch C. E. Serotypes and polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis types among disease-associated isolates of group B Neisseria meningitidis in Spain, 1976-1979. J Infect Dis. 1983 Aug;148(2):249–253. doi: 10.1093/infdis/148.2.249. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Olyhoek T., Crowe B. A., Achtman M. Clonal population structure of Neisseria meningitidis serogroup A isolated from epidemics and pandemics between 1915 and 1983. Rev Infect Dis. 1987 Jul-Aug;9(4):665–692. doi: 10.1093/clinids/9.4.665. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Poolman J. T., Hopman C. T., Zanen H. C. Immunochemical characterization of Neisseria meningitidis serotype antigens by immunodiffusion and SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis immunoperoxidase techniques and the distribution of serotypes among cases and carriers. J Gen Microbiol. 1980 Feb;116(2):465–473. doi: 10.1099/00221287-116-2-465. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Poolman J. T., Lind I., Jónsdóttir K., Frøholm L. O., Jones D. M., Zanen H. C. Meningococcal serotypes and serogroup B disease in north-west Europe. Lancet. 1986 Sep 6;2(8506):555–558. doi: 10.1016/s0140-6736(86)90123-6. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Selander R. K., Caugant D. A., Ochman H., Musser J. M., Gilmour M. N., Whittam T. S. Methods of multilocus enzyme electrophoresis for bacterial population genetics and systematics. Appl Environ Microbiol. 1986 May;51(5):873–884. doi: 10.1128/aem.51.5.873-884.1986. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Stroffolini T., Congiu M. E., Occhionero M., Mastrantonio P. Meningococcal disease in Italy. J Infect. 1989 Jul;19(1):69–74. doi: 10.1016/s0163-4453(89)94980-3. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Stroffolini T., Rosmini F., Curianò C. M. A one year survey of meningococcal disease in Italy. Eur J Epidemiol. 1987 Dec;3(4):399–403. doi: 10.1007/BF00145652. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Epidemiology and Infection are provided here courtesy of Cambridge University Press

RESOURCES