Triplex real-time PCR assay for the detection of Streptococcus pneumoniae, Neisseria meningitidis and Haemophilus influenzae directly from clinical specimens without extraction of DNA

Mahamoudou Ouattara (1) , Melissa Whaley (1) , Laurel T Jenkins (1) , Stephanie Schwartz (1) , Rasmata Ouédraogo Traoré (1) , Seydou Diarra (2) , Jean-Marc Collard (3, 4) , Claudio T Sacchi (5) , Xin Wang (1)

1 CDC - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [Atlanta]
2 INRSP - Institut National de Recherche en Santé Publique [Bamako]
3 Institut Pasteur de Madagascar
4 CERMES - Centre de Recherche Médicale et Sanitaire (Niamey, Niger)
5 Instituto Adolfo Lutz [São Paulo, Brazil]

This study presents a triplex real-time PCR assay that allows for the direct detection of Streptococcus pneumoniae, Neisseria meningitidis, and Haemophilus influenzae in one reaction without DNA extraction, with similar sensitivity and specificity to singleplex assays. This approach saves time, specimen volume and reagents while achieving a higher testing throughput.

Keywords: Cerebrospinal; Bacteria; Real-time PCR; Triplex; Detection; Meningitis

Domains: Life Sciences [q-bio]; Biochemistry, Molecular Biology; Molecular biology; Life Sciences [q-bio]; Microbiology and Parasitology; Bacteriology

Mahamoudou Ouattara, Melissa Whaley, Laurel T Jenkins, Stephanie Schwartz, Rasmata Ouédraogo Traoré, et al.. Triplex real-time PCR assay for the detection of Streptococcus pneumoniae, Neisseria meningitidis and Haemophilus influenzae directly from clinical specimens without extraction of DNA. Diagnostic Microbiology and Infectious Disease, 2018, 93 (3), pp.188-190. ⟨10.1016/j.diagmicrobio.2018.10.008⟩. ⟨pasteur-01973057⟩