Previous Article | Next Article ![]()
Journal of Clinical Microbiology, Dec 1996, 2980-2984, Vol 34, No. 12
LH Wieler, E Vieler, C Erpenstein, T Schlapp, H Steinruck, R Bauerfeind, A Byomi and G Baljer
Out of 174 bovine Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) strains
isolated from diarrheic calves in Germany and Belgium, 122 strains (70.1%)
were selected because of their reactivity with the eae (E. coli attaching
and effacing gene) probe ECW1-ECW2. One hundred seven of these eae-positive
strains (87.7%) harbored stx1 genes, 13 strains (10.7%) had stx2 genes, and
2 strains (1.6%) had both stx genes. The strains displayed 17 different O
types, the majority (97 strains) [79.5%]) belonging to O5 (5 strains), O26
(21 strains), O111 (13 strains) O118 (36 strains), O145 (9 strains), and
O157 (13 strains). In the HEp-2 cell adhesion assay, 99 strains (81.1%)
showed a localized adhesion, and 80 strains (65.6%) stimulated actin
accumulation, as determined in the fluorescence actin staining test. None
of the strains harbored genes coding for bundle-forming pili (bfpA),
clearly differentiating them from enteropathogenic. E. cole. espB gene
sequences were only detectable in 23 (18.9%) of the eae-positive bovine
STEC strains. Three different PCRs were established, differentiating
between eae sequences of enteropathogenic E. coli strain E2348/69 (O127:H6)
and STEC strain EDL933 (O157: H7). Primers matching in the more
heterologous downstream eae sequences gave amplicons in only 8 of the 17 O
types (O84:H-, O103:H2, O111:H-, O111:H2, O119:H25, O128:H-, O145:H28, and
O157:H-). Only 15 STEC strains, belonging to serotypes O111H:-, O111H:2,
O145:H28, and O157:H-, gave amplicons in all three eae-specific PCRs. These
data demonstrate that bovine STEC strains are a heterogeneous group of
pathogenic bacteria, a lot of which share virulence markers with STEC
strains causing infections in humans. However, in contrast to human STEC
strains, bovine eae-positive STEC strains are mainly restricted to the stx1
genotype. The observation that espB sequences are not highly conserved
might have consequences for the serological recognition of the ESPB protein
in patients. Like in human STEC strains, eae-related sequences are closely
associated with certain E. coli O groups; however, they are not serotype
specific.
Copyright © 1996 by the American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.
Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli strains from bovines: association of adhesion with carriage of eae and other genes
Institut fur Hygiene und Infektionskrankheiten, Tiere der Universitat Giessen, Germany. lwieler@umabnet.ab.umd.edu
This article has been cited by other articles:
| Antimicrob. Agents Chemother. | Clin. Microbiol. Rev. |
|---|---|
| Clin. Vaccine Immunol. | ALL ASM JOURNALS |
|---|