title: Distribution of the usp gene in uropathogenic Escherichia coli isolated from companion animals and correlation with serotypes and size-variations of the pathogenicity island.
abstract: Uncomplicated urinary tract infection (UTI) caused by uropathogenic Escherichia coli(UPEC) is a serious problem not only among humans but also in companion animals such as dogs and cats. The uropathogenic specific protein gene (usp ) is preferentially distributed in UPEC isolates from dogs and cats compared with the distribution of usp in E. coli strains from feces of healthy dogs and cats and this pattern of distribution resembles that observed in human UPEC strains. The UPEC strains from companion animals share common O serotypes like O1, O2, O4, O6, O16, O18, O22, O25 and O75 as those reported for human UPEC. The size variation of the pathogenicity island that includes usp in UPEC from dogs and cats was almost similar to those seen in human UPEC. We propose that dogs and cats are the alternative reservoirs for UPEC strains that are associated with human UTI.
authors: Department of Medical Technology, School of Health Sciences, Okayama University, Okayama, Okayama 700-8558, Japan. hkurazon@md.okayama-u.ac.jp
authors: Hisao
authors: H
authors: Kurazono
authors: Masayuki
authors: M
authors: Nakano
authors: Shingo
authors: S
authors: Yamamoto
authors: Osamu
authors: O
authors: Ogawa
authors: Kazuyo
authors: K
authors: Yuri
authors: Katsuhisa
authors: K
authors: Nakata
authors: Miyuki
authors: M
authors: Kimura
authors: Sou-Ichi
authors: S
authors: Makino
authors: G Balakrish
authors: GB
authors: Nair
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000829:Animals, Domestic / Q000382:microbiology*; D002371:Cat Diseases / Q000382:microbiology; D002415:Cats; D004197:Disease Reservoirs; D004283:Dog Diseases / Q000382:microbiology; D004285:Dogs; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000235:genetics* / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D004927:Escherichia coli Infections / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000662:veterinary; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D005243:Feces / Q000382:microbiology; D044404:Genomic Islands; D006801:Humans; D012703:Serotyping; D014552:Urinary Tract Infections / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000662:veterinary; D014556:Urine / Q000382:microbiology; D014774:Virulence
chemical_list: D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; C446159:USP protein, E coli