A real-time PCR assay for detection of emerging infectious Elizabethkingia miricola

Elizabethkingia miricola, a Gram-negative bacillus, is emerging as a life-threatening pathogen in both humans and animals. However, no specific and rapid diagnostic method exists to detect E. miricola . Here, we established a real-time PCR assay for the rapid, sensitive, and specific detection of E. miricola with a wide dynamic range of 10 8 copies/μL to 10 2 copies/μL. The detection limit of the real-time assay was 145 copies/μL, which was 100 times more sensitive than conventional PCR. All clinical isolates E. miricola from different host species yield very close Tm (80.25 ± 0.25 °C). Additionally, no cross-reaction or false positives were observed in the assay for non-target bacterial species. The performance of this assay was primarily assessed by testing frog tissue samples. Overall, our study provided a real-time PCR assay, which is a rapid, sensitive, and specific diagnostic method that could be used for early diagnosis and epidemiological investigation of E. miricola . • A real-time PCR was developed for detection of E. miricola. • The PCR assay showed high specificity, sensitivity and reproducibility for the diagnosis of E. miricola. • The real-time PCR assay here developed is expected to improve the surveillance and research on E. miricola.