RANDOMLY AMPLIFIED POLYMORPHIC DNA ANALYSIS CONFIRMS THE BIOTYPING SCHEME OF PORPHYROMONAS-GINGIVALIS

The application of the arbitrarily primed PCR (AP-PCR) procedure to ge nerate randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) fingerprints for the study of the taxon Porphyromonas gingivalis was investigated. Nine hum an strains and seven animal strains of P. gingivalis as well as eighte en strains other than P. gingivalis were analysed. Four nanomer primer s of random sequence were evaluated for their ability to distinguish g enetic diversity. Three primers generated RAPD fingerprints that allow ed the sixteen strains to be differentiated; two of the primers yielde d species-specific markers, and two of the primers permitted biotype d istinction. Cluster analysis of the RAPD fingerprints revealed two maj or phenetic groups that matched the human and animal biotypes. Our res ults indicate that AP-PCR (i) can generate strain-specific fingerprint s, (ii) confirms genetic heterogeneity and the biotype grouping of the P. gingivalis taxon, and (iii) enables identification of potential ge netic markers at the species, biotype and subtype levels and is thus a promising tool for bacterial systematics. Our results also underline the potential of AP-PCR for epidemiological studies of periodontal pat hogens.