Common virulence factors and genetic relationships between O18:K1:H7 Escherichia coli isolates of human and avian origin.

ABSTRACT: Extraintestinal pathogenic (ExPEC) Escherichia coli strains of serotype O18:K1:H7 are mainly responsible for neonatal meningitis and sepsis in humans and belong to a limited number of closely related clones. The same serotype is also frequently isolated from the extraintestinal lesions of colibacillosis in poultry, but it is not well known to what extent human and avian strains of this particular serotype are related. Twenty-two ExPEC isolates of human origin and 33 isolates of avian origin were compared on the basis of their virulence determinants, lethality for chicks, pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) patterns, and classification in the main phylogenetic groups. Both avian and human isolates were lethal for chicks and harbored similar virulence genotypes. A major virulence pattern

SUBMITTER: Moulin-Schouleur M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC1594794 | biostudies-literature | 2006 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature