Epidemic of multiple Treponema pallidum strains in men who have sex with men in Japan: efficient multi-locus sequence typing scheme and indicator biomarkers.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The challenges in culturing Treponema pallidum have hindered molecular-biological analysis. This study aims to establish a molecular epidemiological analysis of syphilis among Japanese men who have sex with men (MSM) and to investigate the relationship between bacteremia and associated pathophysiology.

Methods

We used whole blood specimens from syphilis-diagnosed individuals in Tokyo, collected between February 2019 and June 2022. All individuals were MSM, and most were people with HIV (97.2%). We used a multi-locus sequence typing (MLST) scheme for epidemiological analysis. Sequences for MLST (TP0136, TP0548, and TP0705) were obtained.

Results

Out of 71 whole blood samples, 26 samples (36.6%) were positive for TP0136, and we sequenced three loci for MLST i

SUBMITTER: Sato W 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11484458 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature