Genetic diversity in Helicobacter pullorum from human and poultry sources identified by an amplified fragment length polymorphism technique and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis

Helicobacter pullorum was first isolated from the faeces and carcasses of p oultry and has been associated with human gastroenteritis. The aim of this study was to examine interstrain genetic diversity within H. pullorum. Two fingerprinting techniques were used: amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) and pulsed field gel electrophoretic (PFGE) analysis. The 20 strain s examined were from four countries and comprised 13 human isolates and sev en poultry isolates. Their identity was confirmed by a species-specific PCR assay. The human and poultry isolates had distinct genotypes and most stra ins showed a high degree of genetic diversity. Genotyping also indicated a clonal origin for two strains from the same poultry flock, and established a close relatedness between three chicken carcass isolates from a processin g plant. It is concluded that these two genotyping techniques will provide a useful basis for future epidemiological investigations of H. pullorum in poultry, and may provide a link with its possible causal role in human gast rointestinal infections.