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Bacterial loads of Ureaplasma urealyticum contribute to development of urethritis in men

Y Shimada1, S Ito, K Mizutani

  • 1Research and Development, Narita R&D Department, Mitsubishi Chemical Medience Corporation, Chiba, Japan.

International Journal of STD & AIDS
|September 20, 2013
PubMed

Insights

High bacterial loads of Ureaplasma urealyticum (≥5 × 10^3 cells/ml) in first-void urine are significantly linked to non-gonococcal urethritis (NGU) symptoms in men. This finding helps define Ureaplasma urealyticum

Area of Science:

  • Microbiology
  • Urology
  • Infectious Diseases

Background:

  • Ureaplasma urealyticum is frequently detected in men, but its role in non-gonococcal urethritis (NGU) remains unclear.
  • The specific bacterial load threshold for Ureaplasma urealyticum to cause symptomatic NGU is undefined.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To determine the bacterial loads of Ureaplasma urealyticum significantly associated with NGU.
  • To correlate Ureaplasma urealyticum loads with objective inflammatory markers in symptomatic and asymptomatic men.

Main Methods:

  • Quantification of Ureaplasma urealyticum 16S rRNA genes using real-time PCR in first-void urine (FVU).
  • Measurement of leukocyte counts in FVU via automated urine particle analysis to assess inflammation.
  • Comparison of bacterial loads and leukocyte counts between asymptomatic and symptomatic men.

Main Results:

  • A positive correlation was found between Ureaplasma urealyticum gene copies/ml and leukocyte counts/µl in FVU (r = 0.49, p = 0.0003).
  • Bacterial loads of ≥10^4 gene copies/ml (≥5 × 10^3 cells/ml) were significantly associated with NGU symptoms (p < 0.0001) and higher leukocyte counts (p < 0.0001).

Conclusions:

  • A bacterial load of ≥5 × 10^3 cells/ml of Ureaplasma urealyticum in FVU is significantly associated with symptomatic NGU.
  • This bacterial load threshold can help differentiate between colonization and pathogenic infection by Ureaplasma urealyticum in men.
Keywords:
Sexually transmitted infectionUreaplasma urealyticumbacterial loadleukocyte countnon-gonococcal urethritisreal-time polymerase chain reaction

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