Isolation and molecular identification of Mycoplasma equigenitalium from equine genital tracts in northern India

Although Mycoplasma equigenitalium has been implicated in equine reproductive problems, its prevalence is largely unexplored due to the lack of specific diagnostic tests. To address this limitation, the authors developed and optimized species specific primer pairs that target M. eguigenitalium rpoB (RNA polymerase B subunit) gene sequences. The specificity of the PCR assay developed in this study was determined using 12 field isolates including the type strain of M. equigenitalium and other Mycoplasma species. In the field study, a total of 122 mare and stallion sles comprising of 50 clinical and 72 random sles were subjected to speciesspecific PCR assay to detect M. equigenitalium in equine genital tracts. Mycoplasma equigenitalium (MEG) species specific PCR detected 22.13% positive sles however, only 9.01% of the sles were found to be positive using the conventional culture technique. The PCR established in this study could be used for rapid, specific and accurate diagnosis of M. equigenitalium strains. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first report addressing the development and evaluation of species specific PCR to detect M.equigenitalium.