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Molecular epidemiology of Legionella pneumophila serogroup 1 isolates identify a prevalent sequence type, ST505, and a distinct clonal group of clinical isolates in Toyama Prefecture, Japan

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Journal of Infection and Chemotherapy

Abstract

We performed comparative analyses of Legionella pneumophila serogroup (SG) 1 isolates obtained during 2005–2012 in Toyama Prefecture, Japan, by sequence-based typing (SBT) and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). Seventy-three isolates of L. pneumophila SG 1, including 17 isolates from patients, 51 from public baths, 4 from cooling towers, and 1 from a shower, were analyzed. The isolates were classified into 43 sequence types (STs) by SBT and 52 types by PFGE. Fourteen STs were unique to Toyama Prefecture, as determined from the SBT database of European Working Group for Legionella Infections (EWGLI), as of October 31, 2012. ST505 strain was identified in 4 isolates from patients and 5 isolates from public baths, and these isolates belonged to 2 PFGE types. These, however, were similar because of the difference with only two restriction fragments, indicating that ST505 strain was prevalent among L. pneumophila SG 1 isolates in this area. ST505 strains isolated from patients and public baths were distributed along the river in a western part of Toyama Prefecture. SBT and PFGE profiles of 3 clinical isolates were identical with those of 3 environmental isolates from the suspected origins of the infection in each case, respectively. This finding suggested that SBT and PFGE were useful for epidemiological study. Furthermore, by SBT analysis, we identified a clonal group formed only by 7 clinical isolates that are not associated with bathwater, suggesting that they were derived from unrecognized sources.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Dr. Norman K. Fly (Respiratory and Systemic Infection Laboratory, Health Protection Agency, UK) for assigning the newly identified alleles and STs. We also thank the physicians and laboratory personnel in the following institutions for providing the clinical isolates: Kouseiren Takaoka Hospital, Takaoka City Hospital, Tonami General Hospital, and Toyama University Hospital. This work was supported by the Health and Labour Sciences Research Grants (H18-kenki-012, H19-kenki-014, and H22-kenki-014 to F.K.).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Bacteriology, Toyama Institute of Health, 17-1 Nakataikoyama, Imizu, Toyama, 939-0363, Japan

    Jun-ichi Kanatani, Junko Isobe, Keiko Kimata, Tomoko Shima, Miwako Shimizu, Tetsutaro Sata & Masanori Watahiki

  2. Department of Bacteriology I, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, 1-23-1 Toyama, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo, 162-8640, Japan

    Fumiaki Kura

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  1. Jun-ichi Kanatani
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Correspondence to Masanori Watahiki.

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Kanatani, Ji., Isobe, J., Kimata, K. et al. Molecular epidemiology of Legionella pneumophila serogroup 1 isolates identify a prevalent sequence type, ST505, and a distinct clonal group of clinical isolates in Toyama Prefecture, Japan. J Infect Chemother 19, 644–652 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10156-012-0537-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10156-012-0537-x

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