DIRECT DETECTION OF STREPTOCOCCUS PNEUMONIAE AND NEISSERIA MENINGITIDES FROM NASOPHARYNGEAL SWAB SPECIMENS IN CHILDREN USING LAMP-PCR

Background and Aim:Streptococcus pneumoniae and Neisseria meningitides, two main causative agents of meningitis have been assigned as overall concerns in children hospital wards. Since the importance of rapid detection of these bacterial agents in Cerebro-spinal Floods specimen’s, standardization and suitability of loop mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) technique on nasopharyngeal swabs of mentioned bacteria were targeted in this research.Methods:Following the collection of fifty inserted nasopharyngeal swabs into skimmed milk– tryptone–glucose–glycerol (STGG) transport medium, crude bacterial DNA was extracted. S. pneumoniae and N. meningitidis gene determinants (lytA and ctrA) were targeted taking advantage of LAMP technique successively. A comparison was performed between the results of culture technique in detection of S. pneumoniae and those of LAMP technique as well as.Results:Twenty nine (58%) and 3 (6%) of fifty collected swabs were reported as positive for S. pneumoniae N. meningitidis respectively. Positive swabs were among those of S. pneumoniae positive swabs therefore, a positive correlation between the S. pneumoniae and N. meningitidis colonization was observed. Comparison between LAMP assay and culture technique showed that, LAMP assay is more sensitive since LAMP assay declared 29 swabs S. pneumoniae positive, while culture technique showed 25 swabs positive for S. pneumoniae.Conclusion:This study has revealed LAMP assay to be sensitive and suitable for direct detection of S. pneumonia and N. meningitidis from nasopharyngeal swabs.

Keywords:

S. pneumoniae , N. meningitidis , LAMP technique