Tropheryma whipplei in Patients with Pneumonia

Tropheryma whipplei is the etiologic pathogenic agent of Whipple disease (WD), characterized by various clinical signs, such as diarrhea, weight loss, lymphadenopathy, and polyarthritis. PCR-based methods for diagnosis of WD have been developed. T. whipplei has been identified in saliva and stool sa...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Sabri Bousbia, Laurent Papazian, Jean-Pierre Auffray, Florence Fenollar, Claude Martin, Wenjun Li, Laurent Chiche, Bernard La Scola, Didier Raoult
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 2010-02-01
Series:Emerging Infectious Diseases
Subjects:
Online Access:https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/16/2/09-0610_article
Description
Summary:Tropheryma whipplei is the etiologic pathogenic agent of Whipple disease (WD), characterized by various clinical signs, such as diarrhea, weight loss, lymphadenopathy, and polyarthritis. PCR-based methods for diagnosis of WD have been developed. T. whipplei has been identified in saliva and stool samples from patients with WD and from healthy persons. T. whipplei DNA has also been found in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) samples of a child with pneumonia. We detected DNA of T. whipplei in 6 (3%) of 210 BAL samples collected in intensive care units by using 16S rDNA and specific quantitative PCR. We identified 4 novel genotypes of T. whipplei. In 1 case, T. whipplei was the only bacterium; in 4 others, it was associated with buccal flora. We suggest that T. whipplei should be investigated as an etiologic agent of pneumonia.
ISSN:1080-6040
1080-6059