Genetic diversity in human-derived Pneumocystis carinii isolates from four geographical locations shown by analysis of mitochondrial rRNA gene sequences

A. E. Wakefield, C. C. Fritscher, A. S. Malin, L. Gwanzura, W. T. Hughes, R. F. Miller

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

67 Scopus citations

Abstract

The opportunistic fungal pathogen Pneumocystis carinii is a frequent cause of pneumonia in immunocompromised hosts. In this study, we have compared the DNA sequences of a portion of the mitochondrial large-subunit rRNA gene of P. carinii (an informative locus showing up to 27% differences among isolates of P. carinii from human-, rat-, mouse-, ferret-, rabbit-, and horse-infected lungs) obtained from human-derived isolates from widely disparate geographical areas, including Britain, the United States, Brazil, and Zimbabwe. A single-base polymorphism which varied among samples was identified. Apart from this nucleotide, the DNA sequences of all samples were identical. The sequences of the British samples were shown to be stable over a period of 4 years. These data suggest that there is relatively low genetic diversity among isolates of human-derived P. carinii from different global regions.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)2959-2961
Number of pages3
JournalJournal of clinical microbiology
Volume32
Issue number12
DOIs
StatePublished - 1994
Externally publishedYes

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Microbiology (medical)

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