Establishment of TaqMan Real-time PCR Assay for Detection of Arcanobacterium pyogenes

The study was aimed to establish a specific and sensitive TaqMan Real-time PCR assay for detection of Arcanobacterium pyogenes (A.pyogenes).Based on the conservative sequence of pyolysin (PLO) gene of A.pyogenes published in GenBank, specific primers and TaqMan probes were designed. The TaqMan Real-time PCR assay was established, and the specificity and sensitivity were tested.The specificity test results showed that only A.pyogenes exhibited typical curves.The detection sensitivity of this assay was 77.6 fg genomic DNA per 20 μL reaction, and 63 CFU/mL for pure cultures.16 out of 23 clinical samples were positive detected by the TaqMan Real-time PCR assay, which were consistent with API Coryne identification.The TaqMan Real-time PCR assay developed in this study was specific and sensitive for detection of A.pyogenes, and it could be used for identification and epidemiological investigation of A.pyogenes.