Evaluation of a Modified Single-Enzyme Amplified-Fragment Length Polymorphism Technique for Fingerprinting and Differentiating of Mycobacterium kansasii Type I Isolates

The usefulness of single-enzyme amplified-fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) analysis for the subtyping of Mycobacterium kansasii type I isolates was evaluated. This simplified technique classified 253 type I strains into 12 distinct clusters. The discriminating power of this technique was high, and the technique easily distinguished between the epidemiologically unrelated control strains and our clinical isolates. Overall, the technique was relatively rapid and technically simple, yet it gave reproducible and discriminatory results. This technique provides a powerful typing tool which may be helpful in solving many questions concerning the reservoirs, pathogenicities, and modes of transmission of these isolates.