In France, the clinical distribution of Legionella species and serogroups does not correspond to their environmental distribution. Legionella pneumophila serogroup 1 is more prevalent among clinical isolates (95.4%) than in the environment (28.2%), whereas L. anisa is more frequent in the environment (13.8%) than in the clinical setting (0.8%).
An analysis of 691 French clinical Legionella isolates showed that the endemic L. pneumophila serogroup 1 strain Paris was responsible for 12.2% of all cases of legionellosis and had a specific pulsed-field gel electrophoresis pattern. We also demonstrated the presence of this endemic clone throughout Europe
A new method for the rapid and sensitive detection of Legionella pneumophila in hot water systems has been developed. The method is based on an IF assay combined with detection by solid-phase cytometry. This method allowed the enumeration of L. pneumophila serogroup 1 and L. pneumophila serogroups 2 to 6, 8 to 10, and 12 to 15 in tap water samples within 3 to 4 h. The sensitivity of the method was between 10 and 100 bacteria per liter and was principally limited by the filtration capacity of membranes. The specificity of the antibody was evaluated against 15 non-Legionella strains, and no cross-reactivity was observed. When the method was applied to natural waters, direct counts of L. pneumophila were compared with the number of CFU obtained by the standard culture method. Direct counts were always higher than culturable counts, and the ratio between the two methods ranged from 1.4 to 325. Solid-phase cytometry offers a fast and sensitive alternative to the culture method for L. pneumophila screening in hot water systems.
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