BOX-POLYMERASE CHAIN REACTION-BASED DNA ANALYSIS OF NONSEROTYPEABLE STREPTOCOCCUS-PNEUMONIAE IMPLICATED IN OUTBREAKS OF CONJUNCTIVITIS

Nonserotypeable isolates predominate in epidemic conjunctivitis caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae, Previous evaluations of outbreaks of pne umococcal conjunctivitis have relied on epidemiologic factors and the nontypeability of the isolates to infer that a single clone was involv ed, In the present study, BOX-polymerase chain reaction DNA analysis w as used to characterize nonserotypeable S. pneumoniae isolated by conj unctival culture during a recent conjunctivitis outbreak and to compar e these isolates with those from outbreaks described earlier, The rece nt outbreak was caused by a single pneumococcal clone, Outbreaks in se parate parts of the United States in 1980-1981 were all caused by the same clone, Cluster analysis revealed a high degree of genetic related ness among isolates causing conjunctivitis compared with that among ot her nonserotypeable S. pneumoniae, with the closest relatedness being found among the 1996 and 1980-1981 conjunctival isolates.