The present invention discloses an oligonucleotide which comprises a part or the entire sequence of the nucleotide sequence shown in SEQ ID NO: 1, SEQ ID NO: 2, SEQ ID NO: 3, SEQ ID NO: 4, SEQ ID NO: 5, SEQ ID NO: 6, SEQ ID NO: 7 or SEQ ID NO: 8, or a part or the entire sequence of a sequence complementary to the nucleotide sequence shown in SEQ ID NO: 1, SEQ ID NO: 2, SEQ ID NO: 3, SEQ ID NO: 4, SEQ ID NO: 5, SEQ ID NO: 6, SEQ ID NO: 7 or SEQ ID NO: 8, wherein the oligonucleotide is capable of hybridizing with a nucleotide sequence of Mycobacterium intracellulare gene; a primer or a probe for the detection of M. intracellulare, which comprises the aforementioned oligonucleotide; and a method for detection of M. intracellulare using the aforementioned primer and/or the probe.
According to the detection method of the present invention, any false-positive result in diagnosis can be eliminated and detection or diagnosis of M. intracellulare can be carried out with higher accuracy, more preciseness, and more specifically compared to a conventional diagnostic method employing a cell culture assay or a PCR assay. The method also enables to quantify a microbial cell.