Primer sensitivity: can it influence the results in Enterococcus faecalis prevalence studies?

Renu Nandakumar, Raksha Mirchandani, Ashraf Fouad

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

8 Scopus citations

Abstract

Background/Objective: Recent polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based studies have shown significant variability in the prevalence of Enterococcus faecalis cases with nonhealing endodontic infections. This variability may be, at least in part, due to the differences in sensitivities of the primers used. The purpose of this study was to compare the sensitivity of 3 sets of PCR primers which have been reported in the endodontic literature. Methods: The 3 primers sets used were: group 1) tuf gene-based primers with genus-level specificity; and groups 2 and 3) 16S rDNA-based primers that were E. faecalis specific. Three strains of E. faecalis at concentrations of 102-108 cells/mL were included in this study. Results: The PCR amplification of E. faecalis strains with the 3 primer pairs showed that group 1 primers consistently had the highest sensitivity, followed by group 2 and group 3 (P<.0001). Conclusion: A tuf-based PCR identification assay followed by direct sequencing would yield accurate and consistent prevalence rates of E. faecalis in endodontic infections.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)429-432
Number of pages4
JournalOral Surgery, Oral Medicine, Oral Pathology, Oral Radiology and Endodontology
Volume103
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - Mar 2007
Externally publishedYes

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Surgery
  • Oral Surgery
  • Otorhinolaryngology
  • General Dentistry

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