International journal of women's health
Molecular Characterization of Listeria monocytogenes Associated with Adverse Pregnancy Outcomes in Iraq with Whole-Genome Analysis of a Representative Isolate
By Hamad NA, Hassan Al-Alouci MM and Zaidan SA.
Abstract
Background
Pregnancy-associated listeriosis can cause severe fetal and obstetric complications, yet molecular epidemiological data from Iraq remain limited. This study integrated clinical and epidemiological data with PCR-based virulence profiling of Listeria monocytogenes isolates and whole-genome sequencing (WGS) of one representative clinical isolate.
Methods
In this prospective cross-sectional study, 150 pregnant women presenting with spontaneous abortion, stillbirth/intrauterine fetal death, or preterm labor were enrolled. L. monocytogenes isolates were characterized by culture, biochemical testing, 16S rRNA PCR, and PCR screening of hlyA, actA, inlA, and inlB. One representative isolate (A125-2) was subjected to WGS on the BGISEQ-500 platform for sequence typing, virulence and antimicrobial-resistance gene profiling, and phylogenomic placement.