Clostridium difficile PCR-ribotyping
Registry Details
| Area | Health Science |
| Lab name | Nosocomial Infections Laboratory |
| Lab location | Kenepuru Science Centre, Porirua |
| Test name | Clostridium difficile PCR-ribotyping |
| Organisms | Clostridium difficile from outbreaks, recurrent infections and severe disease |
| Requested for surveillance | no |
| Notice required | no |
| Routine turnaround time | 10 working days for reference specimens |
| Culture requirements | Pure culture |
| Media requirements | Any medium that supports the growth of the organism |
| Pre-transport requirements | Ambient temperature |
| Transport requirements | Ambient temperature |
| Unacceptable sample types | Clinical specimens will not be accepted |
| How results reported | The PCR-ribotype will be reported if the PCR-ribotyping products match those of one of the reference C. difficile PCR-ribotyping strains held by ESR. |
| Referral link | Form |
Details
PCR-ribotyping is based on variations in the spacer regions between the genes encoding 16S rRNA and 23S rRNA. In the C. difficile genome, there are multiple copies of these genes and the spacer regions vary in length. The spacer regions are amplified by PCR and the amplicons sized by capillary-gel electrophoresis. The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control’s set of reference strains representing 25 C. difficile PCR-ribotypes (001, 002, 003, 012, 014, 015, 017, 020, 023, 027, 029, 046, 053, 056, 070, 075, 077, 078, 081, 087, 095, 106, 117, 126 and 131) is used to identify PCR-ribotypes.