MOLECULAR IDENTIFICATION OF OROPHARYNGEAL KINGELLA KINGAE IN PEDIATRIC PATIENTS AND ITS ASSOCIATION WITH OSTEOARTICULAR INFECTIONS AND ONCOLOGICAL CONDITIONS IN BASRAH, IRAQ
Keywords:
Kingella Kingae, OAI, real time PCR, RTX toxin geneAbstract
Kingella kingae is a gram-negative bacterium known to cause serious invasive infections, which can be detected using molecular technology. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of oropharyngeal carriage of Kingella kingae during the first five years of life, assess the association of asymptomatic carriage with osteoarticular infections (OAI), and compare the prevalence of Kingella kingae in normal children versus immunocompromised children. The study included 111 children divided into three groups: 61 normal, 18 with OAI, and 32 oncology patients. Throat swabs were collected from all children, and joint fluid samples were obtained from OAI children. Both culture and real-time PCR targeting the rtxA and rtxB genes were performed on all samples. The prevalence of Kingella kingae carriage was found to be 2.7% in all children. Specifically, the prevalence was 1.6% in the normal group, 6.3% in the oncology group, and none were detected in the OAI group.
In conclusion, this study represents the first report of Kingella kingae detection in Iraqi children. Real-time PCR targeting the RTX toxin genes (A and B) proved to be the most effective method for detecting this microorganism
