Strain differentiation in Bacteroides fragilis by ribotyping and computer-assisted gel analysis.

It is important to distinguish between Bacteroides fragilis strains as their virulence may vary and as B. fragilis seems to be a heterogeneous species. The aim of our study was to evaluate ribotyping for differentiation of 46 strains of B. fragilis and for assessment of strain heterogeneity within and between the two DNA-DNA homology strain groups established in this species. Twenty-seven strains belonged to Johnson's DNA homology group I and eight to group II. Eleven strains had not been assigned to any group (NI group). DNA from all strains was cut with BglI, EcoRI and HindIII. Restriction fragment length polymorphisms were investigated using a non-radioactive digoxigenin-labelled cDNA probe transcribed from Escherichia coli 16S+23S rRNA. Ribotyping with BglI was most discriminatory, revealing a total of 26 different patterns by visual inspection of gels. EcoRI followed with 20 patterns and HindIII with 13 patterns. The gels from ribotyping were processed using the Dendron computer-assisted program. Strain clusters established using Dendron were not always in agreement with homology-based strain groups. Strains of the NI group fell into both homology groups. Ribotyping, as it is based on a relatively small portion of the genome, is useful for strain distinction in epidemiological studies with B. fragilis, whereas DNA-DNA homology, using the entire genome, is more reliable for taxonomy. The Dendron computer-assisted program, which enabled objective assessment of multiple banding patterns, increased the reliability of ribotyping.