Background: Serotype 1 was the most prevalent pneumococcal meningitis serotype encountered in Niger over the period 2003-2011 (pre-vaccination era), accounting for 45.3% of infections.
Methods: Multiple locus VNTR analysis (MLVA) was used to create a genotypic snapshot of a representative subset of the pneumococcal population of serotype 1.
Results: MLVA using 16 markers revealed a homogeneous genetic background of pneumococci serotype 1 from Niger, which clustered with few serotype 1 pneumococci from some African countries, while other African countries displayed different clonal complexes. DNA from Niger and from other African countries were different from pneumococci serotype 1 from European countries.
Conclusions: MLVA-typing revealed a low genetic diversity among pneumococci serotype 1 from meningitis cases in Niger in the pre-vaccination era.
Keywords: Genetic diversity; Multiple locus VNTR analysis; Niger; Serotype 1; Streptococcus pneumoniae.
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