Multicentre MDR Elizabethkingia anophelis isolates: Novel random amplified polymorphic DNA with capillary electrophoresis systems to rapid molecular typing compared to genomic epidemiology analysis

Elizabethkingia species are ubiquitous bacteria that uncommonly cause human infection. Elizabethkingia anophelis was first identified in 2011 from the mosquito Anopheles gambiae. The currently available bacterial typing systems vary greatly with respect to labour, cost, reliability, and ability to discriminate among bacterial strains. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based fingerprinting using random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) is commonly used to identify genetic markers. To our knowledge, no system coupling RAPD-PCR and capillary gel electrophoresis (CGE) has been utilized for the epidemiological typing of E. anophelis. Thus, the aim of the present study was to establish a reliable and reproducible molecular typing technique for E. anophelis isolates based on a multi-centre assessment of bacteraemia patients. Here, we used a rapid CGE-light-emitting diode-induced fluorescence (LEDIF)-based method in conjunction with RAPD-PCR to genotype E. anophelis with a high level of discrimination. All clinical isolates of E. anophelis were found to be typeable, and isolates from two hospitals formed two distinct clusters. The results demonstrated the potential of coupling RAPD and CGE as a rapid and efficient molecular typing tool, providing a reliable method for surveillance and epidemiological investigations of bacterial infections. The proposed method shows promise as a novel, cost-effective, high-throughput, first-pass typing method.