In Clinical Samples Detection of Histoplasma Capsulatum DNA
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Development of a Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification Method for Detection of Histoplasma capsulatum DNA in Clinical Samples Downloaded from Christina M. Scheel, Yitian Zhou, Raquel C. Theodoro, Bethany Abrams, S. Arunmozhi Balajee and Anastasia P. Litvintseva J. Clin. Microbiol. 2014, 52(2):483. DOI: 10.1128/JCM.02739-13. Published Ahead of Print 27 November 2013. http://jcm.asm.org/ Updated information and services can be found at: http://jcm.asm.org/content/52/2/483 These include: on October 13, 2014 by UNESP - Universidade Estadual Paulista REFERENCES This article cites 38 articles, 13 of which can be accessed free at: http://jcm.asm.org/content/52/2/483#ref-list-1 CONTENT ALERTS Receive: RSS Feeds, eTOCs, free email alerts (when new articles cite this article), more» Information about commercial reprint orders: http://journals.asm.org/site/misc/reprints.xhtml To subscribe to to another ASM Journal go to: http://journals.asm.org/site/subscriptions/ Development of a Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification Method for Detection of Histoplasma capsulatum DNA in Clinical Samples a a b a c a Christina M. Scheel, Yitian Zhou, * Raquel C. Theodoro, Bethany Abrams, * S. Arunmozhi Balajee, Anastasia P. Litvintseva Downloaded from Mycotic Diseases Branch, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, USAa; Universidade Estadual Paulista, Campus de Botucatu-UNESP, San Paulo, Brazilb; Division of Global Disease Detection and Emergency Response, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, USAc Improved methods for the detection of Histoplasma capsulatum are needed in regions with limited resources in which the or- ganism is endemic, where delayed diagnosis of progressive disseminated histoplasmosis (PDH) results in high mortality rates. We have investigated the use of a loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) assay to facilitate rapid inexpensive molecular diagnosis of this disease. Primers for LAMP were designed to amplify the Hcp100 locus of H. capsulatum. The sensitivity and limit of detection were evaluated using DNA extracted from 91 clinical isolates of known geographic subspecies, while the assay http://jcm.asm.org/ (6 ؍ specificity was determined using DNA extracted from 50 other fungi and Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Urine specimens (n collected from HIV-positive individuals with culture- and antigen-proven histoplasmosis were evaluated using the LAMP assay. without evidence of histoplasmosis were used as assay controls. The Hcp100 LAMP (10 ؍ Specimens from healthy persons (n assay was 100% sensitive and specific when tested with DNA extracted from culture isolates. The median limit of detection was <6 genomes (range, 1 to 300 genomes) for all except one geographic subspecies. The LAMP assay detected Hcp100 in 67% of an- tigen-positive urine specimens (4/6 specimens), and results were negative for Hcp100 in all healthy control urine specimens. We have shown that the Hcp100 LAMP assay is a rapid affordable assay that can be used to expedite culture confirmation of H. cap- sulatum in regions in which PDH is endemic. Further, our results indicate proof of the concept that the assay can be used to de- on October 13, 2014 by UNESP - Universidade Estadual Paulista tect Histoplasma DNA in urine. Further evaluation of this assay using body fluid samples from a larger patient population is warranted. istoplasma capsulatum is a dimorphic fungus that causes his- plate DNA for further amplification, which occurs very rapidly Htoplasmosis. In immunocompromised persons, H. capsula- (6). tum can disseminate throughout the body, causing progressive Nucleic acid amplification via LAMP has several cost advan- disseminated histoplasmosis (PDH), which is characterized by fe- tages over PCR. First, Bst polymerase is less expensive and more ver, weight loss, and hepatosplenomegaly. Without early diagno- robust than Taq (7–9). Further, LAMP requires no thermal cy- sis and antifungal intervention, PDH can cause death. cling equipment, since the assay is performed at a single temper- Timely detection of PDH is problematic in resource-chal- ature, allowing the use of either a heat block or a water bath to lenged countries, since few rapid assays exist for this disease (1) achieve nucleic acid amplification. Reactions are carried out in and its symptoms are vague and often confused with those of single tubes, and results can be visualized under UV light. In order mycobacterial or leishmanial infections (2, 3). Many laboratories to facilitate rapid inexpensive molecular diagnosis of PDH, we in resource-limited areas in which the disease is endemic rely on developed a LAMP assay targeting the single-copy gene Hcp100. sterile-site cultures for diagnosis of PDH; however, H. capsulatum Hcp100 is a member of the p100 gene family and is overexpressed grows slowly and may take several weeks for identification in cul- in H. capsulatum during macrophage invasion (10). Unlike many tures. The AccuProbe H. capsulatum culture identification test multicopy housekeeping genes, Hcp100 shows little sequence (Gen-Probe) can be used for rapid molecular identification of H. identity with the DNA of related organisms and is not prone to capsulatum in cultures, but this test is expensive and is not readily false hybridization that may lead to cross-reactivity. available in developing countries. Several additional molecular MATERIALS AND METHODS assays for detection of H. capsulatum have been developed (1, 4, ϭ 5), but none has been subjected to large-scale interlaboratory eval- H. capsulatum isolates. H. capsulatum isolates (n 91) used in this study were cultured from frozen mycelial stocks provided by Roche Molecular uation. These assays rely on PCR methodology and require expen- sive reagents and equipment, which may be unsustainable in lab- oratories with limited funding. Received 3 October 2013 Returned for modification 11 November 2013 Here we describe the development of a loop-mediated isother- Accepted 19 November 2013 mal amplification (LAMP) assay for histoplasmosis, which pro- Published ahead of print 27 November 2013 vides an affordable method of molecular identification that can be Editor: S. A. Moser performed and interpreted without costly equipment in resource- Address correspondence to Christina M. Scheel, [email protected]. challenged regions. Briefly, LAMP is a nucleic acid amplification * Present address: Yitian Zhou, University of Pennsylvania Graduate School, technique that utilizes a polymerase with helicase activity, Bst Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Bethany Abrams, Emory University, Atlanta, from Bacillus stearothermophilus. The helicase activity allows for Georgia, USA. amplification of DNA at a constant temperature and is facilitated Copyright © 2014, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved. by four primers, 2 with cDNA, that form stem-loop DNA struc- doi:10.1128/JCM.02739-13 tures. Once formed, the stem-loop structures become the tem- February 2014 Volume 52 Number 2 Journal of Clinical Microbiology p. 483–488 jcm.asm.org 483 Scheel et al. Systems (Pleasanton, CA). Mycelia were grown on brain heart infusion TABLE 1 Primers used for LAMP of the Hcp100 genetic locus of (BHI) agar slants and subcultured three times to ensure optimal growth H. capsulatum and purity prior to DNA extraction. All isolates were previously identified Primer Sequence (5= to 3=) with respect to their geographic subspecies by multilocus sequence typing FIP TCCCCGCGTCTCCCGAATACCGATCCAATGTCCGTTCACC (MLST) and phylogenetic analysis (11), as described by Theodoro et al. BIP TCTGCACGGAAAACTGCGGCCTACGGCAACTCCGAAACC (12). The geographic subspecies of study isolates were as follows: four F3 GTAGTCGACGTTCGCAACT North American 1 (NAm 1), 65 North American 2 (NAm 2), 11 Latin B3 GCCGACGTCGTTTACATCG Downloaded from American A (LAm A), five Latin American B (LAm B), two lineage H81, and one each African, Netherlands, lineage H66, and lineage H68. Fungal DNA extraction. Genomic DNA was extracted using a Qiagen DNeasy tissue kit (Qiagen, Valencia, CA), with several modifications to Clinical specimens. Six urine specimens (one specimen per person) the manufacturer’s instructions. Briefly, a portion of the fungal mat was from HIV-infected persons with symptoms consistent with PDH, positive transferred to 5-ml polypropylene tubes containing 800 l Qiagen ATL Histoplasma urine antigen test results, and culture-confirmed H. capsula- buffer and 60 U of proteinase K and was homogenized inside a biological tum infections were collected between 2004 and 2009 at the Clinica safety cabinet using an Omni tissue homogenizer (Omni International, Familiar Luis Angel Garcia (Guatemala City, Guatemala) (17), under con- Kennesaw, GA) at slow speed for 30 s and then at high speed for 30 s, using ditions reviewed and approved by the internal review boards of the Cen- http://jcm.asm.org/ a clean probe for each isolate. Homogenates were capped, incubated at ters for Disease Control and Prevention and the Universidad del Valle de 55°C for 1 h with frequent vortex mixing, and then cooled to room tem- Guatemala. Ten urine specimens were collected from healthy persons perature (RT). For each homogenate, RNase A (Sigma-Aldrich Corp., St. who had no indication of histoplasmosis. Two “mock-positive” samples Louis, MO) was added to a final concentration of 1 mg/ml and the mixture were prepared from different pools of histoplasmosis-negative urine sam- was incubated for 5 min at RT, followed by the addition of 900 l Qiagen ples, collected from healthy persons, by spiking with 1 ng H.