{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,29]],"date-time":"2026-08-29T00:22:05Z","timestamp":1787962925374,"version":"build-2784847793"},"reference-count":45,"publisher":"Public Library of Science (PLoS)","issue":"7","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2021,7,8]],"date-time":"2021-07-08T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1625702400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100002141","name":"Public Health England","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["PhD2017\/33"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["PhD2017\/33"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100002141","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100000739","name":"University of Southampton","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["FACVC17A\/Clarke\/201718\/264"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["FACVC17A\/Clarke\/201718\/264"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100000739","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["www.plosone.org"],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["PLoS ONE"],"abstract":"<jats:sec id=\"sec001\">\n<jats:title>Background<\/jats:title>\n<jats:p>Lymphogranuloma venereum (LGV) is caused by <jats:italic>Chlamydia trachomatis<\/jats:italic> strains with <jats:italic>ompA<\/jats:italic> genotypes L1 to L3. An LGV epidemic associated with the L2b genotype has emerged in the past few decades amongst men who have sex with men (MSM). <jats:italic>C<\/jats:italic>. <jats:italic>trachomatis<\/jats:italic> genotypes can be discriminated by outer membrane protein A gene (<jats:italic>ompA<\/jats:italic>) sequencing, however this method has limited resolution. This study employed a high-resolution genotyping method, namely, multi-locus tandem repeat (VNTR) analysis with <jats:italic>ompA<\/jats:italic> sequencing (MLVA-<jats:italic>ompA<\/jats:italic>), to assess the distribution of LGV MLVA-<jats:italic>ompA<\/jats:italic> genotypes amongst individuals attending genitourinary medicine (GUM) clinics in London.<\/jats:p>\n<\/jats:sec>\n<jats:sec id=\"sec002\">\n<jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title>\n<jats:p>Clinical specimens were collected from individuals attending eight London-based GUM clinics. Specimens that tested positive for <jats:italic>C<\/jats:italic>. <jats:italic>trachomatis<\/jats:italic> by commercial nucleic acid amplification test (NAAT) were confirmed as LGV by <jats:italic>pmpH<\/jats:italic> real-time PCR. LGV-positive DNA extracts were subsequently genotyped using MLVA-<jats:italic>ompA<\/jats:italic>.<\/jats:p>\n<\/jats:sec>\n<jats:sec id=\"sec003\">\n<jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n<jats:p>Two hundred and thirty DNA extracts were confirmed as LGV, and 162 (70%) yielded complete MLVA-<jats:italic>ompA<\/jats:italic> genotypes. Six LGV MLVA-<jats:italic>ompA<\/jats:italic> genotypes were identified: 1.9.2b-L2, 1.9.3b-L2b, 1.9.2b-L2b, 1.9.2b-L2b\/D, 1.4a.2b-L2b, and 5.9.2b-L1. The following LGV <jats:italic>ompA<\/jats:italic> genotypes were identified (in descending order of abundance): L2, L2b, L2b\/D, and L1. Eight <jats:italic>ompA<\/jats:italic> sequences with the hybrid L2b\/D profile were detected. The hybrid sequence was identical to the <jats:italic>ompA<\/jats:italic> of a recombinant L2b\/D strain detected in Portugal in 2017.<\/jats:p>\n<\/jats:sec>\n<jats:sec id=\"sec004\">\n<jats:title>Conclusions<\/jats:title>\n<jats:p>The L2 <jats:italic>ompA<\/jats:italic> genotype was found to predominate in the London study population. The study detected an unusual hybrid L2b\/D <jats:italic>ompA<\/jats:italic> profile that was previously reported in Portugal. We recommend further monitoring and surveillance of LGV strains within the UK population.<\/jats:p>\n<\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0254233","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2021,7,8]],"date-time":"2021-07-08T17:27:32Z","timestamp":1625765252000},"page":"e0254233","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1371\/journal.pone.corrections_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":15,"title":["High-resolution genotyping of Lymphogranuloma Venereum (LGV) strains of Chlamydia trachomatis in London using multi-locus VNTR analysis-ompA genotyping (MLVA-ompA)"],"prefix":"10.1371","volume":"16","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2428-7731","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Chloe","family":"Manning","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Colette","family":"O\u2019Neill","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Ian N.","family":"Clarke","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Monica","family":"Rebec","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-6558-6039","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Penelope R.","family":"Cliff","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Peter","family":"Marsh","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"340","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2021,7,8]]},"reference":[{"issue":"10","key":"pone.0254233.ref001","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1821","DOI":"10.1111\/jdv.15729","article-title":"2019 European guideline on the management of lymphogranuloma venereum","volume":"33","author":"HJC de Vries","year":"2019","journal-title":"J Eur Acad Dermatology Venereol"},{"issue":"9","key":"pone.0254233.ref002","first-page":"441","article-title":"A cluster of lymphogranuloma venereum among homosexual men in Rotterdam with implications for other countries in Western Europe","volume":"148","author":"HM G\u00f6tz","year":"2004","journal-title":"Ned Tijdschr Geneeskd"},{"issue":"7","key":"pone.0254233.ref003","first-page":"1090","article-title":"New lymphogranuloma venereum Chlamydia trachomatis variant, Amsterdam","volume":"11","author":"J Spaargaren","year":"2005","journal-title":"Emerg Infect Dis"},{"issue":"11","key":"pone.0254233.ref004","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1787","DOI":"10.3201\/eid1111.050821","article-title":"Slow Epidemic of Lymphogranuloma Venereum L2b Strain","volume":"11","author":"J Spaargaren","year":"2005","journal-title":"Emerg Infect Dis"},{"issue":"11","key":"pone.0254233.ref005","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1684","DOI":"10.1099\/jmm.0.000597","article-title":"Lymphogranuloma venereum rates increased and Chlamydia trachomatis genotypes changed among men who have sex with men in Sweden 2004\u20132016","volume":"66","author":"J Isaksson","year":"2017","journal-title":"J Med Microbiol"},{"issue":"7","key":"pone.0254233.ref006","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"996","DOI":"10.1086\/423966","article-title":"Resurgence of lymphogranuloma venereum in Western Europe: an outbreak of Chlamydia trachomatis serovar l2 proctitis in The Netherlands among men who have sex with men","volume":"39","author":"RF Nieuwenhuis","year":"2004","journal-title":"Clin Infect Dis"},{"issue":"1","key":"pone.0254233.ref007","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"26","DOI":"10.1086\/509922","article-title":"Lymphogranuloma venereum in the United kingdom","volume":"44","author":"H Ward","year":"2007","journal-title":"Clin Infect Dis"},{"issue":"5","key":"pone.0254233.ref008","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e0126145","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0126145","article-title":"High Prevalence of Co-Infections by Invasive and Non-Invasive Chlamydia trachomatis Genotypes during the Lymphogranuloma Venereum Outbreak in Spain","volume":"10","author":"M Rodriguez-Dominguez","year":"2015","journal-title":"PLoS One"},{"issue":"13","key":"pone.0254233.ref009","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1674","DOI":"10.1503\/cmaj.050621","article-title":"Emergence of lymphogranuloma venereum in Canada","volume":"172","author":"Canadian LGV Working Group","year":"2005","journal-title":"CMAJ"},{"issue":"3","key":"pone.0254233.ref010","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1029","DOI":"10.1128\/JCM.02389-06","article-title":"Lymphogranuloma Venereum in Australia: Anorectal Chlamydia trachomatis Serovar L2b in Men Who Have Sex with Men","volume":"45","author":"D Stark","year":"2007","journal-title":"J Clin Microbiol"},{"key":"pone.0254233.ref011","unstructured":"Public Health England. 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