Comparison of sludge and clinical isolates of Listeria monocytogenes.
OBJECTIVE
Listeria monocytogenes strains isolated in the same geographical area from sewage sludge and from patients presenting with listeriosis were compared.


RESULTS
All isolates were typed by serotyping, phage typing and SmaI/ApaI pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). Among the sludge isolates (n=32), 22 subtypes could be distinguished by the combination of all typing methods. The human isolates (n=11) were distributed into 10 subtypes which clearly differed from those observed among sludge isolates, except for one cluster formed by two related human isolates which showed high similarity in PFGE patterns (SmaI: 92%; ApaI: 89.5%) with one sludge isolate.


CONCLUSIONS
These results suggest the existence of an epidemiological link between sludge and human isolates, but they may also be reflecting the distribution of L. monocytogenes types within the environment.


CONCLUSIONS
Sludge and human L. monocytogenes may be related but further epidemiological studies are necessary to elucidate this point.
Lozniewski
A
A
Laboratoire de Bactériologie-Virologie, Faculté de Médecine, Université Henri-Poincaré Nancy, France.
Humbert
A
A
Corsaro
D
D
Schwartzbrod
J
J
Weber
M
M
Le Faou
A
A
D015373:Bacterial Typing Techniques / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D001434:Bacteriophage Typing / Q000379:methods; D016521:Electrophoresis, Gel, Pulsed-Field / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D008089:Listeria monocytogenes / Q000145:classification / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D008088:Listeriosis / Q000382:microbiology*; D012703:Serotyping / Q000379:methods; D012722:Sewage / Q000382:microbiology*
D012722:Sewage