Genomic analysis of plasmid content in food isolates of E. coli strongly supports its role as a reservoir for the horizontal transfer of virulence and antibiotic resistance genes.

ABSTRACT: The link between E. coli strains contaminating foods and human disease is unclear, with some reports supporting a direct transmission of pathogenic strains via food and others highlighting their role as reservoirs for resistance and virulence genes. Here we take a genomics approach, analyzing a large set of fully-assembled genomic sequences from E. coli available in GenBank. Most of the strains isolated in food are more closely related to each other than to clinical strains, arguing against a frequent direct transmission of pathogenic strains from food to the clinic. We also provide strong evidence of genetic exchanges between food and clinical strains that are facilitated by plasmids. This is based on an overlapped representation of virulence and resistance genes in plasmids isolated from

SUBMITTER: Balbuena-Alonso MG 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10896638 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Sep-Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature