Analysis of Internal Transcribed Spacer 1 Sequences of Pneumocystis jiroveci from Clinical Specimens

Jae-Seok Kim; Yong-Kyun Kim; Ji Young Park; Eun Kyung Mo; Han Sung Kim; Wonkeun Song; Hyoun Chan Cho; Kyu Man Lee

doi:10.4068/cmj.2008.44.2.82

Journal List > Chonnam Med J > v.44(2) > 1017905

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Kim, Kim, Park, Mo, Kim, Song, Cho, and Lee: Analysis of Internal Transcribed Spacer 1 Sequences of Pneumocystis jiroveci from Clinical Specimens

Original Article

Chonnam Medical Journal

Chonnam Medical Journal 2008; 44(2): 82-86.

Published online: 31 August 2008

DOI: https://doi.org/10.4068/cmj.2008.44.2.82

Analysis of Internal Transcribed Spacer 1 Sequences of Pneumocystis jiroveci from Clinical Specimens

Jae-Seok Kim, Yong-Kyun Kim, Ji Young Park, Eun Kyung Mo¹, Han Sung Kim, Wonkeun Song, Hyoun Chan Cho, Kyu Man Lee

Department of Laboratory Medicine, Hallym University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.

¹Department of Internal Medicine, Hallym University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.

Corresponding author (jaeseok@hallym.or.kr)

Accepted 1 July 2008

Abstract

Pneumocystis jiroveci (formerly Pneumocystis carinii f. sp. hominis) is one of the causative agents of the most serious fungal respiratory infections in immuno-compromised patients. Although P. jiroveci infections have been increasing, there are few data on the P. jiroveci genotypes in Korea. This study was performed to investigate the genetic diversity of P. jiroveci detected from clinical specimens. Twenty-one P. jirovecipositive respiratory samples detected by polymerase chain reaction were collected from a tertiary-care hospital in Seoul between Jan 2003 and Aug 2006. Internal Transcribed Spacer (ITS) sequence analysis was performed by direct sequencing. Only 9 specimens were appropriate for sequence analysis. Twelve specimens, however, showed mixed sequences by direct sequencing. Three ITS genotypes of P. jiroveci were found. There is limited genetic diversity of ITS genes of P. jiroveci from clinical isolates analyzed in this study. The present ITS gene analysis suggests that most of P. jiroveci isolates may have genetic similarity among patients in Korea.

Keywords: Pneumocystis jiroveci, Internal transcribed spacer, Clinical isolate

Figures and Tables

Fig. 1

Partial nucleotide sequences of ITS1-5.8S rRNA-ITS2 of nine P. jiroveci strains from clinical specimens at a tertiarycare hospital in Seoul, Korea. A total of three ITS types in nine P. jiroveci strains have been found. Mixed ITS types (n=12) could not be analyzed in this study. Hyphens are introduced for sequence comparison, indicating missing nucleotides.

Table 1

Characteristics of patients and their ITS genotypes obtained by direct sequencing of nine P. jiroveci isolates

^*ITS2 sequence types were not analyzed; sequences of nucleotide position at 122, 169~172, 176 were not obtained by direct sequencing used in this study. Hyphens are introduced for sequence comparison, indicating missing nucleotides.

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