DNA diagnosis of central nervous system infection by Mycoplasma pneumoniae

A nested polymerase chain reaction method for the detection of Mycoplasma pneumoniae was devised and applied to clinical samples. This system could detect 5 to 50 fg of the DNA from M pneumoniae and did not amplify the DNA from Mycoplasma genitalium. With this method, the sequence of this organism was detected successfully in cerebrospinal fluid samples from four of six patients and in serum samples from three of four patients with clinically and serologically confirmed mycoplasmal central nervous system infection. This strongly suggested the direct invasion of this organism into the central nervous system and the concomitant occurrence of mycoplasmaremia. The nested amplification method is considered to be simple, rapid, and sensitive without the use of radioisotopes, thereby being highly applicable as a useful tool in routine clinical laboratories for the preliminary detection and diagnosis of mycoplasmal infections, particularly in extrapulmonary cases.