Genomic fingerprinting of Neisseria meningitidis associated with group C meningococcal disease in Canada

A single electrophoretic type (ET15) of Neisseria meningitidis has been associated with an increased incidence of group C meningococcal disease in Canada. Genomic fingerprinting through pulsed-field gel electrophoresis of chromosomal DNA was used to characterize the clonal relationship among meningococcal isolates of different electrophoretic types and among isolates within ET15. The genomic fingerprints of the ET15 isolates, while similar as a group, were sufficiently distinct to confirm linkage for four pairs of strains from focal outbreaks and differed markedly from those of the other common electrophoretic types, ET5, ET9, and ET21.