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Case Reports
. 2021 May;40(5):1097-1102.
doi: 10.1007/s10096-020-04116-y. Epub 2020 Dec 23.

Unexpected Mycoplasma hominis infection in two renal transplant recipients traced back to the same donor by whole-genome sequencing

V Hinić  1 , H M B Seth-Smith  2   3 , S Damm  4 , P Amico  4 , N Khanna  5 , A Egli  2   3 , V Bättig  5
Affiliations
Case Reports

Unexpected Mycoplasma hominis infection in two renal transplant recipients traced back to the same donor by whole-genome sequencing

V Hinić et al. Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis. 2021 May.

Abstract

Mycoplasma hominis is a common colonizer of the lower genitourinary tract. Although its clinical relevance for causing urogenital infections in immunocompetent individuals is controversial, this bacterium has been involved in severe invasive infections in allograft recipients. In this report, we describe two cases of M. hominis infection in two young renal transplant recipients within the first month post-transplant. Although at first no epidemiological link between the two cases had been suspected, whole-genome sequencing (WGS) analysis showed that both isolates were identical, highly suggestive of an origin with the common organ donor.

Keywords: Mycoplasma hominis; Renal transplant; Typing; Whole-genome sequencing (WGS).

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Conflict of interest statement

Not applicable.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Growth of M. hominis. Picture was taken after 6 days of incubation on Brucella agar under anaerobic conditions
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Timeline for case 1 and case 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Minimum spanning tree based on cgMLST analysis of M. hominis genomes. Figure was generated in Ridom Seqsphere+ based on an ad hoc scheme using 413 targets. Distances between genomes show the number of allele differences. The two case isolates are 612321-19 and 613095-19, and are seen to be identical, and the control isolate is 404665-19. Other genomes from databases are shown for context
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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