Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 28, 2026
Identification of Mycobacterium Species by DNA Microarray Chip Method
Published on: June 24, 2025
Pyrosequencing assay for rapid identification of Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex species
Imen Ben Kahla1, Mireille Henry, Jalel Boukadida
1URMITE, CNRS UMR6236, IRD198, IFR 48, Institut Méditerranée Infection, Aix-Marseille-Université, Marseille, France. michel.drancourt@univmed.fr.
Background:
Identification of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex organisms to the species level is important for diagnostic, therapeutic and epidemiologic perspectives. Indeed, isolates are routinely identified as belonging to the M. tuberculosis complex without further discrimination in agreement with the high genomic similarity of the M. tuberculosis complex members and the resulting complex available identification tools.
Findings:
We herein develop a pyrosequencing assay analyzing polymorphisms within glpK, pykA and gyrB genes to identify members of the M. tuberculosis complex at the species level. The assay was evaluated with 22 M. tuberculosis, 21 M. bovis, 3 M. caprae, 3 M. microti, 2 M. bovis BCG, 2 M. pinnipedii, 1 M. canettii and 1 M. africanum type I isolates. The resulted pyrograms were consistent with conventional DNA sequencing data and successfully identified all isolates. Additionally, 127 clinical M. tuberculosis complex isolates were analyzed and were unambiguously identified as M. tuberculosis.
Conclusion:
We proposed a pyrosequencing-based scheme for the rapid identification of M. tuberculosis complex isolates at the species level. The assay is robust, specific, rapid and can be easily introduced in the routine activity.
