Detection and Characterization of Diphtheria Toxin Gene-Bearing Corynebacterium Species through a New Real-Time PCR Assay

Abstract

Respiratory diphtheria, characterized by a firmly adherent pseudomembrane, is caused by toxin-producing strains of Corynebacterium diphtheriae , with similar illness produced occasionally by toxigenic Corynebacterium ulcerans or, rarely, Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis . While diphtheria laboratory confirmation requires culture methods to determine toxigenicity, real-time PCR (RT-PCR) provides a faster method to detect the toxin gene ( tox ).