Assessment of a two-step nucleic acid amplification assay for detection of Neisseria meningitidis followed by capsular genogrouping

Three Outbreak-causingNeisseria meningitidis SerogroupC Clones, Brazil1

“…We identified 8 clusters involving 46 cases that occurred during 2003–2012; all were caused by serogroup C N. meningitidis ( Technical Appendix , Figure ). N. meningitidis serogroup was determined by slide agglutination with specific rabbit antisera (BD Difco, Sparks, MD, USA) or serogroup-specific PCR directly from cerebrospinal fluid samples ( 2 ). Serotype and serosubtype were determined by immunoblot analysis at the National Meningitis Reference Center.…”

Recognition of the epidemiological significance of Neisseria meningitidis capsular serogroup W135 in the Rio de Janeiro region, Brazil

“…The increase in terms of numbers of cases was mainly attributed to serogroup C and W 135 disease (Figure). In that period, there were 229 (55%) (Rebelo et al 2006, Pedro et al 2007). Using PCR for diagnostic purposes, case cluster of serogroup W 135 was identified in the city of Nova Iguaçu, in 2004, affecting young children (Pedro et al 2007) and due to serogroup C in the city of Rio de Janeiro, in 2006, in a group of young adults from the same working place and in the city of Petrópolis, in 2007, in children attending a crèche (Barroso, unpublished observations (Pollard et al 2004).…”

Recognition of the epidemiological significance of Neisseria meningitidis capsular serogroup W135 in the Rio de Janeiro region, Brazil

“…The E-test (AB BIODISK) for testing susceptibility of the serogroup W 135 organisms did not show resistance to penicillin, chloranphenicol, ceftriaxone, rifampicin, and ciprofloxacin; 50% were sulfadiazine resistant. The inception of PCR assays in 2005 for clinical research of suppurative meningitis in the Oswaldo Cruz Institute has contributed for the demonstration of meningococcal aetiology and genogrouping (Rebelo et al 2006, Pedro et al 2007. Using PCR for diagnostic purposes, case cluster of serogroup W 135 was identified in the city of Nova Iguaçu, in 2004, affecting young children (Pedro et al 2007) and due to serogroup C in the city of Rio de Janeiro, in 2006, in a group of young adults from the same working place and in the city of Petrópolis, in 2007, in children attending a crèche (Barroso, unpublished observations).…”