DETECTION OF FASTIDIOUS MYCOBACTERIA IN HUMAN INTESTINES BY THE POLYMERASE CHAIN-REACTION

The aim of this study was to determine whether difficult-to-grow mycob acteria are present in human intestines, Intestinal tissue samples wer e subjected to both mycobacterial culture and a polymerase chain react ion (PCR) assay, After detection by PCR, species identity was determin ed by hybridizing the amplified 16S rRNA gene fragments with species-s pecific oligonucleotides, Intestinal biopsies from 63 patients with no ninflammatory bower diseases (n = 22), Crohn's disease (n = 31), or ul cerative colitis (n = 10) were analyzed. Culture and PCR revealed myco bacteria in four (6%) and 25 (40%) samples, respectively, Samples posi tive by PCR were negative with all probes specific to nine common cult ivable species but were positive with the mycobacterium genavense-spec ific probe in 68% of cases. Mycobacterial isolates were identified as Mycobacterium gordonae and Mycobacterium chelonae, Findings were simil ar in Crohn's disease samples compared to non-Crohn's disease samples, This study shows that difficult-to-grow mycobacteria can be detected by PCR in large and similar proportions of inflamed intestinal tissue from patients with inflammatory bowel disease and intestinal tissue th at appears normal from patients with noninflammatory bowel disease.