Improved Genomic Identification, Clustering, and Serotyping of Shiga Toxin-Producing Escherichia coli Using Cluster/Serotype-Specific Gene Markers.

ABSTRACT: Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) have more than 470 serotypes. The well-known STEC O157:H7 serotype is a leading cause of STEC infections in humans. However, the incidence of non-O157:H7 STEC serotypes associated with foodborne outbreaks and human infections has increased in recent years. Current detection and serotyping assays are focusing on O157 and top six ("Big six") non-O157 STEC serogroups. In this study, we performed phylogenetic analysis of nearly 41,000 publicly available STEC genomes representing 460 different STEC serotypes and identified 19 major and 229 minor STEC clusters. STEC cluster-specific gene markers were then identified through comparative genomic analysis. We further identified serotype-specific gene markers for the top 10 most frequent non-O157:

SUBMITTER: Zhang X 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8785982 | biostudies-literature | 2021

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature