title: Production of enterotoxin and cytotoxin in Campylobacter jejuni strains isolated in Costa Rica.
abstract: The production of toxins by 79 strains of Campylobacter jejuni isolated in Costa Rica from children with campylobacter-induced diarrhoea (44 strains) and from chickens (35 strains) was studied. An enterotoxic effect giving a rounding of mouse adrenocortical tumour (Y1) cells, which could be neutralised with antitoxin against Escherichia coli heat-labile enterotoxin, was detected in supernates from 16 (62%) of 26 strains from children with watery diarrhoea, in 5 (28%) of 18 strains from children with bloody or inflammatory diarrhoea, and in 12 (34%) of the 35 strains from chickens. Cytotoxic effects in human lung fibroblasts (MRC-5), African Green monkey kidney (Vero) cells and human cervical carcinoma (HeLa) cells were observed in none of the 26 strains from children with watery diarrhoea, in 2 (11%) of the 18 strains from children with bloody or inflammatory diarrhoea, and in 6 (17%) of the 35 strains from chickens. The simultaneous production of enterotoxin and cytotoxin was detected in four strains. The cytotoxic effect, which was most prominent in cells freshly seeded at a low density, appeared as a lethal rounding of the cells. Fibroblasts were more sensitive than epithelial cells. The effects of the supernates were inactivated by heating at 100 degrees C for 10 min and decreased after 1 week at 4 degrees C. The production of toxins was lost after storage of the strains for one year at -70 degrees C.
authors.affiliation: Department of Bacteriology, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden.
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Florin
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Antillon
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001427:Bacterial Toxins / Q000096:biosynthesis; D002169:Campylobacter Infections / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000662:veterinary; D016123:Campylobacter jejuni / Q000378:metabolism*; D002460:Cell Line; D002645:Chickens; D003364:Costa Rica; D003603:Cytotoxins / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D003968:Diarrhea, Infantile / Q000382:microbiology*; D004768:Enterotoxins / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D004848:Epithelium / Q000382:microbiology; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; D005347:Fibroblasts / Q000382:microbiology; D006367:HeLa Cells; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D011201:Poultry Diseases / Q000382:microbiology; D014709:Vero Cells
chemical_list: D001427:Bacterial Toxins; D003603:Cytotoxins; D004768:Enterotoxins; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; C027538:heat-labile enterotoxin, E coli