Development and evaluation of a droplet digital PCR assay for the diagnosis of paucibacillary leprosy in skin biopsy specimens.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The reduced amounts of Mycobacterium leprae (M. leprae) among paucibacillary (PB) patients reflect the need to further optimize methods for leprosy diagnosis. An increasing number of reports have shown that droplet digital polymerase chain reaction (ddPCR) is a promising tool for diagnosis of infectious disease among samples with low copy number. To date, no publications have investigated the utility of ddPCR in the detection of M. leprae. The aim of this study was to develop and evaluate a ddPCR assay for the diagnosis of PB leprosy.

Methodology

The two most sensitive DNA targets for detection of M. leprae were selected from electronic databases for assessment of sensitivity and specificity by quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) and ddPCR. Control patie

SUBMITTER: Cheng X 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6438576 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature