Comparison of polymerase chain reaction and non-radioactive hybridization techniques for the identification of Mycobacterium avium strains.

A polymerase chain reaction able to amplify specifically a 205-base-pair DNA fragment of Mycobacterium avium genome was used and compared to a nonradioactive hybridization assay (AccuProbe) and to conventional biochemical identification. The PCR approach to diagnosis of M. avium infection is a valid diagnostic alternative to the more classical procedures.