We identified different diarrheagenic (DEC) Escherichia coli pathotypes isolated from 1,207 children with and without acute endemic diarrhea in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil collected as part of a case-control study. Since the identification of DEC cannot be based on only biochemical and culture criteria, we used a multiplex polymerase chain reaction developed by combining five specific primer pairs ...

In this report, we present a PCR protocol for rapid identification of enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli on a LightCycler instrument. In a multiplex assay, the genes encoding Shiga toxin 1 and Shiga toxin 2 are detected in a single reaction capillary. A complete analysis of up to 32 samples takes about 45 min.

Escherichia coli (E. coli) is the predominant nonpathogenic facultative flora of the human intestine [1]. However, several strains of E. coli have developed the ability to cause disease in humans. Strains of E. coli that cause gastroenteritis in humans can be grouped into six categories: enteroaggregative (EAEC), enterohemorrhagic (EHEC), enteroinvasive (EIEC), enteropathogenic (EPEC), enteroto...

M any pathogenic bacteria modulate the host actin assembly machinery to promote infection and spread. Enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC) O157:H7 is a food-borne pathogen that causes severe diarrhea that can be accompanied by hemolytic uremic syndrome with potentially fatal consequences. Pathogenesis of EHEC and a closely-related pathogen, enteropathogenic E. coli (EPEC), is associated wi...

3. Lin J, Smith MP, Chapin KC, Baik HS, Bennett GN, Foster JW. Mechanisms of acid resistance in enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli. Appl Environ Microbiol 1996;62:3094-100. 4. Michino H, Araki K, Minami S, Takaya S, Sakai N. Investigation of large-scale outbreak of Escherichia coli O157:H7 infection among schoolchildren in Sakai City, 1996. In: Proceedings of the 32nd Joint Conference on Choler...

Pathogenicity islands are capable of excision and insertion within bacterial chromosomes. We describe a protein, Rox, that stimulates excision of the Shigella resistance locus pathogenicity island in Shigella flexneri. Sequence analysis suggests that Rox belongs to a new subfamily of recombination directionality factors, which includes proteins from P4, enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli, and Y...

Enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC) causes a disease involving diarrhea, hemorrhagic colitis, and hemolytic-uremic syndrome (HUS). Here we present the draft genome sequence of NCCP15647, an EHEC isolate from an HUS patient. Its genome exhibits features of EHEC, such as genes for verotoxins, a type III secretion system, and prophages.

The first major outbreaks caused by enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC) raised public and medical awareness of the risks associated with acquiring this potentially deadly infection. The widespread presence of these organisms in the environment, the severity of the clinical sequelae, and the lack of treatment options and effective preventive measures demand that we obtain a better understa...

This is the first report on the fate of enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli O157:H7 in simulated human colonic conditions. The pathogen was progressively eliminated from the bioreactor and did not modify the major populations of resident microbiota. The coadministration of the Saccharomyces cerevisiae CNCM I-3856 probiotic strain led to a significant increase in acetate production but did not re...

We compared PCR amplification of 9 enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli virulence factors among 40 isolates (21 O/H antigenicity classes) with DNA hybridization. Both methods showed 100% of the chromosomal and phage genes: eae, stx, and stx2. PCR did not detect 4%-20% of hybridizable plasmid genes: hlyA, katP, espP, toxB, open reading frame (ORF) 1, and ORF2.