Abstract
BackgroundMycoplasma pneumoniae is one of the most common causative pathogens of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP), accounting for as many as 30–50% of CAP during peak years. An early and rapid diagnostic method is key for guiding clinicians in their choice of antibiotics.MethodsThe recombinase-aided amplification (RAA) assay is a recently developed, rapid detection method that has been used for the detection of several pathogens. The assays were performed in a one-step single tube reaction at 39° Celsius within 15–30 min. In this study, we established an RAA assay for M. pneumoniae using clinical specimens for validation and commercial real-time PCR as the reference method.ResultsThe analytical sensitivity of the RAA assay was 2.23 copies per reaction, and no cross-reactions with any of the other 15 related respiratory bacterial pathogens were observed. Compared with the commercial real-time PCR assay used when testing 311 respiratory specimens, the RAA assay obtained 100% sensitivity and 100% specificity with a kappa value of 1.ConclusionsThese results demonstrate that the proposed RAA assay will be of benefit as a faster, sensitive, and specific alternative tool for the detection of M. pneumoniae.
Highlights
Mycoplasma pneumoniae is one of the most common causative pathogens of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP), accounting for as many as 30–50% of CAP during peak years
We aimed to develop an recombinase-aided amplification (RAA) assay for the detection of M. pneumoniae
The RAA assay for the detection of M. pneumoniae demonstrated high specificity (100%)
Summary
Mycoplasma pneumoniae is one of the most common causative pathogens of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP), accounting for as many as 30–50% of CAP during peak years. Mycoplasma pneumoniae is a major cause of communityacquired pneumonia (CAP) in adults and children, with an epidemic occurring every 3–7 years [1]. This organism can cause up to 20–40% of CAP in the general population during epidemics, and this can rise to as much as 70% in closed populations [1,2,3]. Its clinical manifestations range from mild bronchitis to severe pneumoniae. Traditional detection methods for M. pneumoniae rely on culture, PCR or serology testing [6]. Antibodies toward M. pneumoniae persist for a long time, making it difficult to confirm
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