1. Genomic epidemiology and population structure of Neisseria gonorrhoeae in Norway, 2016–2017
- Author
-
Anne O. Olsen, Jon Bohlin, Kristian Alfsnes, Ola Brønstad Brynildsrud, Martin Steinbakk, Vegard Eldholm, and Dominique A. Caugant
- Subjects
Adult ,Male ,medicine.medical_specialty ,Adolescent ,Gonorrhea ,Microbial evolution and epidemiology: Population Genomics ,genomic epidemiology ,Biology ,medicine.disease_cause ,Men who have sex with men ,Young Adult ,Antibiotic resistance ,Drug Resistance, Bacterial ,Epidemiology ,medicine ,Humans ,antimicrobial resistance ,Homosexuality, Male ,Young adult ,Heterosexuality ,Phylogeny ,Aged ,Aged, 80 and over ,Genetics ,Molecular Epidemiology ,outbreak ,Whole Genome Sequencing ,Norway ,Transmission (medicine) ,High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing ,Outbreak ,population structure ,Bayes Theorem ,General Medicine ,Middle Aged ,medicine.disease ,Neisseria gonorrhoeae ,Female ,Research Article - Abstract
This study presents the nationwide epidemiology of Neisseria gonorrhoeae , using whole-genome sequencing of all culture-positive cases, which comprise roughly 40 % of all cases of gonorrhea reported in Norway from 2016 to 2017. Isolates were assigned to sequence types and Bayesian analysis clusters and variation in genes coding for antibiotic resistance was linked to phenotypic resistance data. The study also included isolates taken from the same patients from different anatomical sites at one or more time points. Comparing these isolates allows for observation of patterns of infections, i.e. multiple reinfections of genetically related clones vs. reinfections of genetically distant clones, and quantification of the genomic variation of closely related isolates from samples taken from a patient within the same day. Demographically, the patients in the study could be split into two groups; one group of patients from the capital with a high proportion of men who have sex with men (MSM), and another consisting of young adults with transmission primarily between males and females from outside the capital. Some clusters of N. gonorrhoeae were restricted to one of these two demographic groups. Pairwise comparison of multiple isolates from the same patients revealed that most were reinfected with different clones. Observations of frequent reinfections in patients is a concern and should be taken into account in the development of improved information and treatment guidelines.
- Published
- 2020