title: Prevalence and characteristics of enteropathogenic Escherichia coli with the eae gene in diarrhoeic rabbits.
abstract: A field study was carried out with the objective of investigating the prevalence of enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC) with the eae gene in diarrhoeic rabbits. EPEC eae+ were isolated from 60 (74%) of 81 diarrhoeic rabbits sampled in 30 industrial fattening farms localized in the four provinces of Galicia (northwestern Spain). Attaching and effacing lesions were found in 44 of 50 animals processed for histology. The 111 E. coli strains identified belonged to 19 different O serogroups and 13 biotypes. However, 53 (48%) of the strains belonged to serogroup O103 and 36 (32%) showed the serobiotype O103:B14. The eae gene was significantly more frequent (100%; 47 of 47) among the highly pathogenic rhamnose-negative strains of serobiotypes O103:B6 and O103:B14 than among the E. coli strains belonging to other serobiotypes (36%; 23 of 64) (P < 0.001). In this first report about the prevalence of EPEC with the eae gene in rabbits, we conclude that the class of E. coli strains observed is a common cause of diarrhoea in Galician rabbit farms, and that highly pathogenic rhamnose-negative strains of serotype O103:K-:H2 and biotype B14 are specially predominant.
authors.affiliation: Departamentos de Microbiología y Parasitología, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, Lugo, Spain.
authors.forename: J E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Blanco
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Blanco
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Blanco
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mora
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Balaguer
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Cuervo
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Balsalobre
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Muñoa
mesh_terms: D018829:Adhesins, Bacterial; D000818:Animals; D001425:Bacterial Outer Membrane Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D015373:Bacterial Typing Techniques; D002352:Carrier Proteins; D002432:Cecum / Q000473:pathology; D003967:Diarrhea / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics / Q000382:microbiology / Q000662:veterinary; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology / Q000472:pathogenicity; D004927:Escherichia coli Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology / Q000662:veterinary*; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; D019081:O Antigens / Q000032:analysis; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D015995:Prevalence; D011817:Rabbits; D012210:Rhamnose / Q000378:metabolism; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies; D013030:Spain / Q000453:epidemiology; D014774:Virulence
chemical_list: D018829:Adhesins, Bacterial; D001425:Bacterial Outer Membrane Proteins; D002352:Carrier Proteins; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; D019081:O Antigens; C073819:eaeA protein, E coli; D012210:Rhamnose