Genotyping Mycoplasma hyorhinis by multi-locus sequence typing and multiple-locus variable-number tandem-repeat...

Area of Science:

• Veterinary Microbiology
• Bacterial Pathogenesis
• Molecular Epidemiology

Background:

• Mycoplasma hyorhinis is a significant swine pathogen causing economic losses.
• Effective genotyping is crucial for monitoring infections and epidemiological investigations.
• Current methods need to be robust for accurate disease control strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and compare multi-locus sequence typing (MLST) and multiple-locus variable-number tandem-repeat analysis (MLVA) for Mycoplasma hyorhinis.
• To characterize Hungarian M. hyorhinis isolates using these newly developed assays.
• To assess the discriminatory power of MLST and MLVA for epidemiological studies.

Main Methods:

• Characterization of 40 M. hyorhinis isolates (39 field isolates and 1 type strain).
• Development and application of a novel PCR-based MLST assay targeting six housekeeping genes.
• Development and application of a novel MLVA assay targeting six tandem-repeat regions.

Main Results:

• MLST differentiated 31 sequence types, while MLVA identified 37 genotypes among the 40 isolates.
• The combined use of MLST and MLVA distinguished all isolates, except those from the same animal.
• MLST provided a high-resolution phylogenetic tree, and MLVA effectively differentiated closely related farm isolates.

Conclusions:

• Developed MLST and MLVA assays are powerful tools for Mycoplasma hyorhinis genotyping.
• These methods significantly enhance the ability to conduct epidemiological studies and monitor swine infections.
• The assays support improved disease control strategies for Mycoplasma hyorhinis in swine populations.