@article{mbs:/content/journal/jmm/10.1099/jmm.0.47707-0, author = "Cherkaoui, Abdessalam and Ceroni, Dimitri and Emonet, Stéphane and Lefevre, Yan and Schrenzel, Jacques", title = "Molecular diagnosis of Kingella kingae osteoarticular infections by specific real-time PCR assay", journal= "Journal of Medical Microbiology", year = "2009", volume = "58", number = "1", pages = "65-68", doi = "https://doi.org/10.1099/jmm.0.47707-0", url = "https://www.microbiologyresearch.org/content/journal/jmm/10.1099/jmm.0.47707-0", publisher = "Microbiology Society", issn = "1473-5644", type = "Journal Article", abstract = " Kingella kingae is an emerging pathogen that is recognized as a causative agent of septic arthritis and osteomyelitis, primarily in infants and children. The bacterium is best detected by rapid inoculation in blood culture systems or by real-time PCR assays. Pathogenesis of the agent was linked recently to the production of a potent cytotoxin, known as RTX, which is toxic to a variety of human cell types. The locus encoding the RTX toxin is thought to be a putative virulence factor, and is, apparently, essential for inducing cytotoxic effects on respiratory epithelial, synovial and macrophage-like cells. Herein, we describe a novel real-time PCR assay that targets the RTX toxin gene and illustrate its use in two clinical cases. The assay exhibited a sensitivity of 30 c.f.u., which is 10-fold more sensitive than a previously published semi-nested broad-range 16S rRNA gene PCR, and showed no cross-reactivity with several related species and common osteoarticular pathogens.", }