title: Serologic and molecular characterization of Vibrio parahaemolyticus strains isolated from seawater and fish products of the Gulf of Mexico.
abstract: The thermostable direct hemolysin (TDH) and TDH-related hemolysin (TRH) are the main virulence factors of Vibrio parahaemolyticus. We isolated V. parahaemolyticus from seawater, fish, and oysters obtained from the Pueblo Viejo Lagoon in Veracruz, determined the serogroups, phenotypically and genotypically characterized TDH and TRH, and investigated the presence of the toxR gene. A total of 46 V. parahaemolyticus strains were isolated, and all of them amplified the 368-bp toxR gene fragment. The trh gene was not identified in any of the strains; 4 of the 46 strains were Kanagawa phenomenon (KP) positive and amplified the 251-bp tdh gene fragment. The most frequent serogroup was serogroup O3. This is the first report of the presence of KP-positive tdh-positive environmental V. parahaemolyticus strains in Mexico.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology of the National School of Biological Sciences, Instituto Politécnico Nacional, Mexico City, Mexico.
authors.forename: María Eugenia
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Cabrera-García
authors.forename: Carlos
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Vázquez-Salinas
authors.forename: Elsa Irma
authors.initials: EI
authors.lastname: Quiñones-Ramírez
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D001427:Bacterial Toxins; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D005393:Fish Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology; D005399:Fishes / Q000382:microbiology; D006460:Hemolysin Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D008800:Mexico / Q000453:epidemiology; D010125:Ostreidae / Q000382:microbiology*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012623:Seawater / Q000382:microbiology*; D012703:Serotyping; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics; D014735:Vibrio Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D014736:Vibrio parahaemolyticus / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D001427:Bacterial Toxins; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D006460:Hemolysin Proteins; D014157:Transcription Factors; C088609:thermostable direct hemolysin-related hemolysin protein, Vibrio parahaemolyticus; C066719:toxR protein, bacteria; C068489:thermostable direct hemolysin