Typing of Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains isolated from Greek water
samples by three typing methods: serotyping, Random Amplified
Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) and Pulsed Field Gel Electrophoresis (PFGE)
The study of various types of Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains isolated
from water environments is of paramount importance from a public health
point of view, due to their ubiquity and pathogenicity. Molecular
(Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA and Pulsed Field Gel Electrophoresis)
and phenotypical (serotyping) typing methods were applied to
environmental P. aeruginosa strains. The typeability and discriminatory
power of the methods were studied and compared. The two molecular
methods managed to type a number of P. aeruginosa strains which were
non-serotypeable due to their rough phenotypes. According to our
results, the combination of phenotypic and genotypic methods increased
the reliability of the results, yielding several different clones that
seem to circulate in Greek water environments
