Neisseria gonorrhoeae: Detection and Typing by Probe Hybridization, LCR, and PCR

Neisseria gonorrhoeae , first described by Neisser in 1879, is a Gram-negative, nonmotile, nonspore-forming diplococcus, belonging to the family Neisseriaceae . It is the etiologic agent of gonorrhea. The other pathogenic species is Neisseria meningitidis , to which N. gonorrhoeae is genetically closely related. Although N. meningitidis is not usually considered to be a sexually transmitted disease, it may infect the mucous membranes of the anogenital area of homosexual men (1 ). The other members of the genus, which include Neisseria lactamic a , Neisseriapolysaccharea , Neisseria cinerea , and Neisseria flavescens , which are related to Neisseria gonorrhoeae , and saccharolytic strains, such as Neisseria subflava , Neisseria sicca , and Neisseria mucosa , which are less genetically related to the aforementioned, are considered to be nonpathogenic, being normal flora of the nasopharyngeal mucous membranes (2 ).