Skip to main content
NCBI home page
Journal of Clinical Laboratory Analysis logoLink to Journal of Clinical Laboratory Analysis
. 2002 Mar 15;16(2):71–75. doi: 10.1002/jcla.10023

Ureaplasma urealyticum biovar determination in women attending a family planning clinic in Guiné‐Bissau, using polymerase chain reaction of the multiple‐banded antigen gene

D Domingues 1,✉, L Távora Tavira 1, A Duarte 2, A Sanca 3, E Prieto 1, F Exposto 1
PMCID: PMC6808028  PMID: 11948794

Abstract

Although Ureaplasma urealyticum is commonly found in the genital tract of asymptomatic women, it has been suggested that only certain subgroups of this microorganism are disease associated. Vaginal specimens were collected to determine the distribution of U. urealyticum biovars and to estimate their possible association with age, absence of lactobacilli, and tetracycline resistance. Of the 94 women studied, 40 (43%) carried U. urealyticum and were biotyped by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Twenty‐nine (73%) strains presented with parvo biovar, 10 (25%) with T960 biovar, and one (2.5%) with both biovars. Parvo biovar was predominant in all age groups and appears to be more frequent in women 20–25 years of age (41%), whereas T960 was common in women 30–35 years of age (22%). In this study, U. urealyticum was not associated with changes in vaginal flora, although the inverse apparently was true for Mycoplasma hominis. However, T960 biovar was more associated with the loss of lactobacilli than was parvo biovar. The number of T960 biovar strains that presented tetracycline (40%) or multiple (100%) resistance was higher than that of parvo biovar strains (27% and 69%, respectively). J. Clin. Lab. Anal. 16:71–75, 2002. © 2002 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.

Keywords: parvo biovar, T960 biovar, lactobacilli, antibiotic, resistance

REFERENCES

  • 1. Cunliffe NA, Fergusson S, Davidson F, Lyon A, Ross PW. 1996. Comparison of culture with the polymerase chain reaction for detection of Ureaplasma urealyticum in endotracheal aspirates of preterm infants. J Med Microbiol 45:27–30. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 2. Abele‐Horn M, Wolff C, Dressel P, Pfaff F, Zimmermann A. 1997. Association of Ureaplasma urealyticum biovars with clinical outcome for neonates, obstetric patients, and gynaecological patients with pelvic inflammatory disease. J Clin Microbiol 35:1199–1202. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 3. Harasawa R, Kanamoto Y. 1999. Differentiation of two biovars of Ureaplasma urealyticum based on 16S‐23S rRNA intergenic spacer region. J Clin Microbiol 37:4135–4138. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 4. Echahidi F, Muyldermans G, Lauwers S, Naessens A. 2000. Development of monoclonal antibodies against Ureaplasma urealyticum serotypes and their use for serotyping clinical isolates. Clin Diagn Lab Immunol 7:563–567. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 5. Taylor‐Robinson D, Furr PM. 1998. Update on sexually transmitted mycoplasmas. Lancet 351(Suppl III):12–15. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 6. Davis JK, Crouse DT, Robertson JA, Davidson MK, Brown MB, Reyes L. 1999. The role of Ureaplasma urealyticum in human reproductive and neonatal diseases. Infect Dis Rev 1:200–207. [Google Scholar]
  • 7. Knox C, Timms P. 1998. Comparison of PCR, nested PCR, and random amplified polymorphic DNA PCR for detection and typing of Ureaplasma urealyticum in specimens from pregnant women. J Clin Microbiol 36:3032–3039. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 8. Kong F, Zhenfang Ma, James G, Gordon S, Gilbert GL. 2000. Molecular genotyping of human Ureaplasma species based on multiple‐banded antigen (MBA) gene sequences. Int J Syst Evol Microbiol 50:1921–1929. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 9. Cordova CMM, Cunha RAF. 2000. Relevant prevalence of Mycoplasma hominis and Ureaplasma urealyticum serogroups in HIV‐1 infected men without urethritis symptoms. Rev Inst Med Trop S Paulo 42:185–188. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 10. Cordova CMM, Cunha RAF. 2000. Importância da pesquisa de micoplasmas no trato urogenital. Laes Haes 121:110–124. [Google Scholar]
  • 11. Teng L‐J, Zheng X, Glass JI, Watson HL, Tsai J, Cassel GH. 1994. Ureaplasma urealyticum biovar specificity and diversity are encoded in multiple‐banded antigen gene. J Clin Microbiol 32:1464–1469. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 12. Zheng X, Teng L‐J, Watson HL, Glass JI, Blanchard A, Cassel GH. 1995. Small repeating units within the Ureaplasma urealyticum MB antigen gene encode serovar specificity and are associated with antigen size variation. Infect Immunol 63:891–898. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 13. Zheng X, Lau K, Frazier M, Cassel GH, Watson HL. 1996. Epitope mapping of the variable repetitive region within the MB antigen of Ureaplasma urealyticum . Clin Diagn Lab Immunol 3:774–778. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 14. Kong F, James G, Zhenfang Ma, Gordon S, Bin W, Gilbert GL. 1999. Phylogenetic analysis of Ureaplasma urealyticum—support for the establishment of a new species, Ureaplasma parvum . Int J Syst Bacteriol 49:1879–1889. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 15. Grattard F, Pozzetto B, Barbeyrac B, Renaudin H, Clerc M, Gaudin OG, Bébéar C. 1995. Arbitrarily‐primed PCR confirms the differentiation of strains of Ureaplasma urealyticum into two biovars. Mol Cel Probes 9:383–389. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 16. Nelson S, Matlow A, Johnson G, Th’ng C, Dunn M, Quinn P. 1998. Detection of Ureaplasma urealyticum in endotracheal tube aspirates from neonates by PCR. J Clin Microbiol 36:1236–1239. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 17. Kong F, Zhu X, Wang W, Zhou X, Gordon S, Gilbert GL. 1999. Comparative analysis and serovar‐specific identification of multiple‐banded antigen genes of Ureaplasma urealyticum biovar 1. J Clin Microbiol 37:538–543. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 18. Ruifu Y, Minli Z, Guo Z, Wang X. 1997. Biovar diversity is reflected by variation of genes encoding urease of Ureaplasma urealyticum . Microbiol Immunol 41:625–627. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 19. Watson HL, Blalock DK, Cassell GH. 1990. Variable antigens of Ureaplasma urealyticum containing both serovar‐specific and serovar‐cross‐reactive epitopes. Infect Immunol 58:3679–3688. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 20. Zheng X, Watson HL, Waites KB, Cassel GH. 1992. Serotype diversity and antigen variation among invasive isolates of Ureaplasma urealyticum from neonates. Infect Immunol 60:3472–3474. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 21. Cassell GH, Waites KB, Watson HL, Crouse AT, Harasawa R. 1993. Ureaplasma urealyticum intrauterine infection: role in prematurity and disease in newborns. Clin Microbiol Rev 6:69–87. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 22. Blanchard A, Hentschel J, Duffy L, Baldus K, Cassel GH. 1993. Detection of Ureaplasma urealyticum by polymerase chain reaction in the urogenital tract of adults, in amniotic fluid, and in the respiratory tract of newborns. Clin Infect Dis 17(Suppl I):S148– S153. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 23. Waites KB, Bébéar CM, Robertson JA, Talkington DF, Kenny GE. 2001. Cumitech 34 In: Nolte FS, editor. Laboratory diagnosis of mycoplasmal infections. Washington, D.C.: American Society for Microbiology; p 1–129. [Google Scholar]
  • 24. Clegg A, Passey M, Yoannes M, Michael A. 1997. High rates of genital mycoplasma infection in the highlands of Papua New Guinea determined both by culture and by a commercial detection kit. J Clin Microbiol 35:197–200. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 25. Clerc MT, Renaudin H, Barbeyrac B. 1994. PCR, a useful tool for biovar determination in Ureaplasma urealyticum . IOM Lett 3:326–327. [Google Scholar]
  • 26. Povlsen K, Thorsen P, Lind I. 2001. Relationship of Ureaplasma urealyticum biovars to the presence or absence of bacterial vaginosis in pregnant women and to the time of delivery. Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis 20:65–67. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 27. Povlsen K, Jensen JS, Lind I. 1998. Detection of Ureaplasma urealyticum biovars by PCR and biovar determination by liquid hybridization. J Clin Microbiol 36:3211–3216. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 28. Neyrolles O, Ferris S, Behbahani N, Montagnier L, Blanchard A. 1996. Organization of Ureaplasma urealyticum urease gene cluster and expression in suppressor strain of Escherichia coli . J Bacteriol 178:647–655. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 29. Matlow A, Th’ng C, Kovach D, Quinn P, Dunn M, Wang E. 1998. Susceptibilities of neonatal respiratory isolates of Ureaplasma urealyticum to antimicrobial agents. Antimicrob Agents Chemother 42:1290–1292. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 30. Koch A, Bilina A, Teodorowicz L, Stary A. 1997. Mycoplasma hominis and Ureaplasma urealyticum in patients with sexually transmitted diseases. Wien Klin Wochenschr 109:584–589. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  • 31. Cedillo‐Ramirez L, Gil C, Zago I, Yanez A, Giono S. 2000. Association of Mycoplasma hominis and Ureaplasma urealyticum with some indicators of non‐specific vaginitis. Rev Latinoam Microbiol 42:1–6. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Journal of Clinical Laboratory Analysis are provided here courtesy of Wiley

RESOURCES