[Development of a protocol on pulsed field gel electrophoresis analysis for Streptococcus suis].

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: To develop a PFGE protocol for Streptococcus suis. METHODS: We developed and optimized a PFGE protocol for S. suis, in terms of plug preparation, choice of restriction endonucleases and optimized electrophoresis parameters. By analyzing the genome sequences of S. suis P1/7 with Mapdraw of DNAStar, we found three restriction enzymes, Swa I, Sma I and Apa I, were more suitable than others. RESULTS: Analysis of 100 isolates of S. suis including 34 of 35 serotypes identified, 59, 53 and 43 patterns were obtained from Swa I, Sma I and Apa I restriction, respectively. The enzyme Swa I had the greatest power for discrimination ability. CONCLUSION: By optimization of the protocol at various conditions, a rapid, reproducible, economic and practical PFGE method for S. suis was developed.