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Verhaegh SJC, Snippe ML, Levy F, Verbrugh HA, Jaddoe VWV, Hofman A, Moll HA, van Belkum A, Hays JP. Colonization of healthy children by Moraxella catarrhalis is characterized by genotype heterogeneity, virulence gene diversity and co-colonization with Haemophilus influenzae. MICROBIOLOGY-SGM 2010; 157:169-178. [PMID: 20847012 DOI: 10.1099/mic.0.042929-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
The colonization dynamics of Moraxella catarrhalis were studied in a population comprising 1079 healthy children living in Rotterdam, The Netherlands (the Generation R Focus cohort). A total of 2751 nasal swabs were obtained during four clinic visits timed to take place at 1.5, 6, 14 and 24 months of age, yielding a total of 709 M. catarrhalis and 621 Haemophilus influenzae isolates. Between January 2004 and December 2006, approximate but regular 6-monthly cycles of colonization were observed, with peak colonization incidences occurring in the autumn/winter for M. catarrhalis, and winter/spring for H. influenzae. Co-colonization was significantly more likely than single-species colonization with either M. catarrhalis or H. influenzae, with genotypic analysis revealing no clonality for co-colonizing or single colonizers of either bacterial species. This finding is especially relevant considering the recent discovery of the importance of H. influenzae-M. catarrhalis quorum sensing in biofilm formation and host clearance. Bacterial genotype heterogeneity was maintained over the 3-year period of the study, even within this relatively localized geographical region, and there was no association of genotypes with either season or year of isolation. Furthermore, chronological and genotypic diversity in three immunologically important M. catarrhalis virulence genes (uspA1, uspA2 and hag/mid) was also observed. This study indicates that genotypic variation is a key factor contributing to the success of M. catarrhalis colonization of healthy children in the first years of life. Furthermore, variation in immunologically relevant virulence genes within colonizing populations, and even within genotypically identical M. catarrhalis isolates, may be a result of immune evasion by this pathogen. Finally, the factors facilitating M. catarrhalis and H. influenzae co-colonization need to be further investigated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Suzanne J C Verhaegh
- The Generation R Study Group, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Martine L Snippe
- Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Foster Levy
- Department of Biological Sciences, East Tennessee State University, Johnson City, TN, USA
| | - Henri A Verbrugh
- Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Vincent W V Jaddoe
- Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- Department of Pediatrics, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- The Generation R Study Group, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Albert Hofman
- Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- The Generation R Study Group, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Henriëtte A Moll
- Department of Pediatrics, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Alex van Belkum
- Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - John P Hays
- Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
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Hays JP, Gorkink R, Simons G, Peeters JK, Eadie K, Verduin CM, Verbrugh H, van Belkum A. High-throughput amplification fragment length polymorphism (htAFLP) analysis identifies genetic lineage markers but not complement phenotype-specific markers in Moraxella catarrhalis. Clin Microbiol Infect 2007; 13:55-62. [PMID: 17184288 DOI: 10.1111/j.1469-0691.2006.01582.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Comparative high-throughput amplified fragment length polymorphism (htAFLP) analysis was performed on a set of 25 complement-resistant and 23 complement-sensitive isolates of Moraxella catarrhalis in order to determine whether there were complement phenotype-specific markers within this species. The htAFLP analysis used 21 primer-pair combinations, generating 41 364 individual fragments and 2273 fragment length polymorphisms, with an average of 862 polymorphisms per isolate. Analysis of polymorphism data clearly indicated the presence of two phylogenetic lineages and 40 (2%) lineage-specific polymorphisms. However, despite the presence of 361 (16%) statistically significant complement phenotype-associated polymorphisms, no single marker was 100% complement phenotype-specific. Furthermore, no complement phenotype-specific marker was found within different phylogenetic lineages. These findings agree with previous results indicating that the complement resistance phenotype within M. catarrhalis is probably defined by multiple genes, although not all of these genes may be present within all M. catarrhalis isolates.
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Affiliation(s)
- J P Hays
- Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
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Hays JP, Eadie K, Veenhoven R, Verduin CM, Verbrugh H, van Belkum A. Pneumococcal vaccination does not affect the genetic diversity of Moraxella catarrhalis isolates in children. Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis 2004; 23:801-3. [PMID: 15449099 DOI: 10.1007/s10096-004-1217-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- J P Hays
- Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Erasmus University Medical Center Rotterdam (EMCR), Dr Molewaterplein 40, 3015 GD, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
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