title: Toxin profiles of Vibrio cholerae non-O1 from environmental sources in Calcutta, India.
abstract: A collection of Vibrio cholerae non-O1 isolated from the aquatic environs of Calcutta, a cholera-hyperendemic area, were examined for the production of cholera toxin (CT), Shiga-like toxins (Vero toxins), heat-stable enterotoxin, and hemolysins. Two (0.5%) V. cholerae non-O1 isolates produced CT. The DNA from both these isolates also hybridized with a DNA probe containing sequences encoding the A subunit of CT. None of the strains produced Shiga-like toxins or heat-stable enterotoxin. Hemolytic activity was observed in 89.7% of the strains, of which 36.1% exhibited biological activity in the suckling mouse. However, none of them produced a hemolysin that cross-reacted with the thermostable direct hemolysin of Vibrio parahaemolyticus. It appears from this study that a small percentage of environmental V. cholerae non-O1 strains do possess the potential for causing cholera-like diarrhea.
authors.affiliation: National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases, Calcutta, India.
authors.forename: G B
authors.initials: GB
authors.lastname: Nair
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Oku
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Takeda
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ghosh
authors.forename: R K
authors.initials: RK
authors.lastname: Ghosh
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chattopadhyay
authors.forename: S C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Pal
authors.forename: J B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Kaper
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Takeda
mesh_terms: D002771:Cholera / Q000453:epidemiology; D002772:Cholera Toxin / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D007194:India; D014734:Vibrio cholerae / Q000145:classification / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D014871:Water Microbiology
chemical_list: D002772:Cholera Toxin