Detection of Ureaplasma urealyticum in urine of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus and healthy individuals by culture and polymerase chain reaction

Abstract

A method was developed to detect Ureaplasma urealyticum in urine by the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). A 457-bp fragment of the urease gene of U. urealyticum was amplified by PCR. Before PCR, components disturbing the amplification had to be reduced. This was possible by diluting the urine 1 in 10 with distilled water and by the extraction of the U. urealyticum DNA. Urine specimens from 41 patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and 21 healthy individuals were treated by the dilution method and investigated by PCR for U. urealyticum DNA. The results were compared with those obtained by culture and the detection rates of PCR and culture were found to be identical. Also there was no difference in the detection rates of U. urealyticum from urine of SLE patients and healthy individuals; 10 (24.4%) of the 41 urine specimens from SLE patients and five (23.8%) of the 21 urine specimens from healthy individuals gave positive results for U. urealyticum. The results of this study do not indicate a decisive role for U. urealyticum in SLE.

Frequency of Mycoplasma hominis and Ureaplasma urealyticum infections in women with systemic lupus erythematosus

“…The increased frequency of infection with Mycoplasma hominis and Ureaplasma urealyticum among patients with SLE, reported in the present study, may suggest the participation of environmental factors in the pathogeny of SLE, as has been suggested in the study of Runge et al (1997) 17 , which showed a higher frequency of Ureaplasma urealyticum infection in the urine of women with SLE.…”

Genital Mycoplasma infection among Mexican women with systemic lupus erythematosus

“…By contrast with the present study, Runge et al . reported a similar frequency of U. urealyticum in urine samples taken from patients with SLE and healthy control individuals with similar sociodemographic characteristics, including age.…”

Ureaplasma urealyticum Continuous Ambulatory Peritoneal Dialysis-Associated Peritonitis Diagnosed by 16S rRNA Gene PCR

“…The presence of leukocytosis provided an important clue that lupus was not the cause of the ongoing peritoneal inflammation, as lupus flares are typically associated with low peripheral white blood cell counts. Genital mycoplasmas, including U. urealyticum have been reported to be more prevalent in urine specimens from patients with lupus (4), although subsequent studies have reached conflicting conclusions in this regard (9). The present report demonstrates the ability of U. urealyticum to cause relapsing peritonitis in the setting of CAPD and the value of molecular diagnostic methods in this clinical setting.…”