title: Prevalence and some properties of verotoxin (Shiga-like toxin)-producing Escherichia coli in seven different species of healthy domestic animals.
abstract: Fecal samples from 720 healthy, domestic animals representing seven different species (cattle, sheep, goats, pigs, chickens, dogs, and cats) were investigated for verotoxin (VT [Shiga-like toxin])-producing Escherichia coli (VTEC). VTEC were isolated from 208 animals (28.9%), most frequently from sheep (66.6% VTEC carriers), goats (56.1%), and cattle (21.1%). VTEC were isolated less frequently from pigs (7.5%), cats (13.8%), and dogs (4.8%) and were not found in chickens (< 0.7%). Forty-one different O:H serotypes and 23 untypeable O-groups were isolated. Five serotypes (O5:H-, O91:H-, O146:H21, O87:H16, and O82:H8) occurred in more than one animal species. Serotypes O5:H-, O91:H-, O146:H21, O128:H2, and OX3:H8 represented 54.8% of the VTEC strains. Nearly 60% of all VTEC O:H serotypes isolated in this study have been implicated as human pathogens, indicating that healthy, domestic animals may serve as a reservoir of human pathogens. All VTEC, except nine feline strains, hybridized with one or both of the VT1 and VT2 specific DNA probes. VT production and enterohemolysin (E-Hly+) production were associated in E. coli from goats, sheep, and cattle but not in E. coli from chickens, pigs, dogs, and cats. A close association of VT with E-Hly+ was found in O5:H-, O146:H21, O128:H2, O77:H4, O119:H25, and O123:(H10) strains. Thirty of 240 (12.5%) E-Hly+ strains hybridized with an E-Hly+ specific DNA probe, indicating heterogeneity of regulatory or structural E-Hly+ genes in strains of E. coli.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Robert Koch-Institut des Bundesgesundheitsamtes, Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Beutin
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Geier
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Steinrück
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Zimmermann
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Scheutz
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000829:Animals, Domestic / Q000382:microbiology*; D001427:Bacterial Toxins / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D002415:Cats; D002417:Cattle; D002645:Chickens / Q000382:microbiology; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000032:analysis; D004285:Dogs; D004768:Enterotoxins / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000302:isolation & purification* / Q000472:pathogenicity; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; D005243:Feces / Q000382:microbiology; D006041:Goats / Q000382:microbiology; D006460:Hemolysin Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis; D015995:Prevalence; D012756:Sheep / Q000382:microbiology; D022622:Shiga Toxin 1; D013552:Swine / Q000382:microbiology
chemical_list: D001427:Bacterial Toxins; D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D004768:Enterotoxins; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; D006460:Hemolysin Proteins; D022622:Shiga Toxin 1; C066219:enterohemolysin