Spread of a large plasmid carrying the cpe gene and the tcp locus amongst Clostridium perfringens isolates from nosocomial outbreaks and sporadic cases of gastroenteritis in a geriatric hospital.
SUMMARYTo investigate two clusters of diarrhoea cases observed in our geriatric hospital wards, the faecal specimens were analysed. Reversed passive latex agglutination assay revealed that 63.2% and 41.7% of the faecal specimens from each cluster were positive for Clostridium perfringens enterotoxin. PCR assay revealed that 71.4% and 68.8% of C. perfringens isolates from each cluster were positive for the enterotoxin gene (cpe). These observations suggested that both the clusters were outbreaks caused by enterotoxigenic C. perfringens. Subsequent pulsed-field gel electrophoresis analysis revealed that the two outbreaks were caused by different C. perfringens isolates. However, these outbreak isolates as well as other sporadic diarrhoea isolates shared a 75-kb plasmid on which the cpe gene and the tcp locus were located. The 75-kb plasmid had horizontally spread to various C. perfringens isolates and had caused outbreaks and sporadic infections. However, the site and time of the plasmid transfer are unclear.
Kobayashi
S
S
Department of Bacteriology, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo, Japan.
Wada
A
A
Shibasaki
S
S
Annaka
M
M
Higuchi
H
H
Adachi
K
K
Mori
N
N
Ishikawa
T
T
Masuda
Y
Y
Watanabe
H
H
Yamamoto
N
N
Yamaoka
S
S
Inamatsu
T
T
D015373:Bacterial Typing Techniques; D003015:Clostridium Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology*; D003016:Clostridium perfringens / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D016000:Cluster Analysis; D016172:DNA Fingerprinting; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics; D004196:Disease Outbreaks; D016521:Electrophoresis, Gel, Pulsed-Field; D004768:Enterotoxins / Q000235:genetics; D005243:Feces / Q000382:microbiology; D005759:Gastroenteritis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology*; D022761:Gene Transfer, Horizontal; D005798:Genes, Bacterial; D005838:Genotype; D005853:Geriatrics; D006761:Hospitals; D006801:Humans; D010957:Plasmids
D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D004768:Enterotoxins; C035598:enterotoxin, Clostridium