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Neisseria meningitidis W-135 in the Basque Country, northern Spain

D Vicente1, O Esnal, J M Marimon

  • 1Hospital Donostia, Servicio de Microbiolgiá, San Sebastián, Spain.

Clinical Microbiology and Infection : the Official Publication of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases
|July 18, 2006
PubMed

Insights

Neisseria meningitidis W-135 caused invasive meningococcal disease and was found in healthy carriers. Isolates were highly similar, indicating a clonal W-135 population in the Basque region.

Area of Science:

  • Microbiology
  • Epidemiology
  • Genetics

Background:

  • Neisseria meningitidis is a leading cause of bacterial meningitis.
  • Serogroup W-135 strains have emerged as significant pathogens globally.
  • Understanding the genetic relatedness of circulating strains is crucial for disease control.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To characterize Neisseria meningitidis W-135 isolates from invasive disease and healthy carriers in the Basque region.
  • To assess the genetic similarity and clonal nature of these W-135 isolates.

Main Methods:

  • Isolates were identified from cases of invasive meningococcal disease and healthy carriers.
  • Multilocus sequence typing (MLST) was used to determine sequence types.
  • Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) with NheI digestion was performed to assess genetic similarity.

Main Results:

  • Neisseria meningitidis W-135 accounted for 1.6% of invasive cases and 3.9% of carrier isolates.
  • All invasive isolates and most carrier isolates belonged to sequence type 22 (ST-22).
  • PFGE showed >85% similarity among invasive and carrier isolates, indicating a clonal population.

Conclusions:

  • Neisseria meningitidis W-135 isolates in the Basque region exhibit a high degree of genetic similarity.
  • The W-135 population in this region is nearly clonal, primarily belonging to ST-22.
  • This clonal nature has implications for disease surveillance and vaccine strategies.

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