Abstract
On the basis of a species-specific PCR assay, a RFLP analysis for typing of Haemophilus parasuis strains was developed and evaluated. Amplification was based on the gene tbpA, encoding a transferrin-binding protein. RFLP analysis of the 1.9-kb tbpA-amplicon using TaqI, AvaI and RsaI endonucleases produced 12 different patterns for the reference strains of the 15 known H. parasuis serovars, and showed a high heterogeneity (33 RFLP groups) for 101 H. parasuis clinical isolates tested. The sensitivity, typeability (100% versus 65% for immunodiffusion), high degree of discrimination (0.93 versus 0.84 for immunodiffusion), simplicity and low cost per test make this PCR-RFLP assay a useful method for typing H. parasuis and, therefore, for studying the epidemiology of outbreaks of Glässer's disease.
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