Frequency of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis RD Rio genotype and its association with multidrug-resistant tuberculosis

Background In recent decades, Mycobacterium tuberculosis with the RD Rio genotype, frequently isolated from tuberculosis patients in Rio de Janeiro, has become part of the Latin American – Mediterranean (LAM) family and has been associated with multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB). The aim of this study was to investigate the frequency of M. tuberculosis RD Rio in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil, and its relationship with MDR-TB. Methods For convenience, 172 susceptible and 63 MDR M. tuberculosis isolates were taken from pulmonary samples from patients diagnosed between January 2007 and December 2011. The DNA extracted from these isolates was analyzed by spoligotyping, PCR-RFLP to characterize fbpC 103 / Ag85C103, multiplex PCR to detect RD Rio and RD174, and MIRU-VNTR 24 loci . Results Among the 235 isolates, the RD Rio pattern was identified in 122 (51.9%) isolates (IC 0.45–0.58), with 100 (42.5%) wild-type and 13 (5.5%) mixed pattern isolates, whereas RD174 was identified in 93 of the 122 RD Rio positive samples (76.3%). The LAM family and the LAM9 lineage were the most frequently identified among the isolates in this study. Among the 63 MDR isolates , 41 (65.1%) were RD Rio and 28 (44.4%) RD174. Conclusion The association of both deletions with MDR proved to be statistically significant, corroborating the few reports that have associated RD Rio with MDR.