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. 2001 Nov-Dec;7(6):1010–1013. doi: 10.3201/eid0706.010615

rpoB Gene mutations in rifampin-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis identified by polymerase chain reaction single-stranded conformational polymorphism.

M Bobadilla-del-Valle 1, A Ponce-de-Leon 1, C Arenas-Huertero 1, G Vargas-Alarcon 1, M Kato-Maeda 1, P M Small 1, P Couary 1, G M Ruiz-Palacios 1, J Sifuentes-Osornio 1
PMCID: PMC2631921  PMID: 11747730

Abstract

The use of polymerase chain reaction-single-stranded conformational polymorphism (PCR-SSCP) to study rpoB gene mutations in rifampin-resistant (RIFr) Mycobacterium tuberculosis has yielded contradictory results. To determine the sensitivity of this method, we analyzed 35 RIFr strains and 11 rifampin-susceptible (RIFs) strains, using the DNA sequencing of the core region of rpoB for comparison. Of the RIFr, 24 had a PCR-SSCP pattern identical to that of H37Rv; the other 11 had four different patterns. The 11 RIFs had PCR-SSCP patterns identical to that of H37Rv. The sensitivity of the assay was 31.4%; its specificity was 100%. We observed a strong correlation between the degree of resistance and the type of mutation.

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Selected References

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