RESUMEN
Recently, PCR-based typing would be of great value for Epidemiological investigation; to identify infectious source of leprosy, understand transmission pattern, and distinguish between relapse & re-infection. Variable TTC DNA repeats in non-coding region and 6bp(ACATCG) tandem repeats in rpoT gene revealed PCR products of different size may be useful to investigate the epidemiology of leprosy. Authors have typed clinical isolates of M. leprae in Korea using difference of TTC DNA repeats in non-coding region and 6bp(ACATCG) tandem repeats in rpoT gene. Of the sequence analysis of isolates(M. leprae) of 20 patients(17 Koreans, 3 foreigners; Bangladesh, Thailand, Philippine), M. leprae with 11 and 12 TTC repeats was showed most common and the isolates with 10 repeats were found in only two foreigners, and 16 Koreans isolates demonstrated four copies of 6bp(ACATCG) tandem repeats in rpoT gene and the isolates with three copies were found in only one Korea and 3 foreigners.