Molecular analysis of typical and atypical enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC) isolated from children with diarrhoea.
Diarrhoea continues to be one of the most common causes of morbidity and mortality among infants and children in developing countries. To investigate the incidence, antimicrobial resistance and genetic relationships of enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC) in children with diarrhoea, a total of 612 stool specimens were collected in Tehran, Iran, and cultured to isolate strains of EPEC. The disc diffusion method was used to determine the susceptibility of the isolates according to the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) guidelines. The presence of eae, stx and bfp-A genes was determined by PCR. The genetic relationships between EPEC isolates were determined by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). Out of the 412 strains of E. coli obtained from 612 diarrhoeal stool specimens, 23 (5.6 %) were identified as EPEC, of which seven (30.4 %) were classified as typical strains of EPEC and 16 (69.6 %) were classified as atypical. Out of the 23 EPEC isolates, 69.5 % were resistant to ampicillin, 39.1 % were resistant to tetracycline and cotrimoxazole, 30.4 % were resistant to cefpodoxime, ceftazidime, ceftriaxone and aztreonam, and 26.1 % were resistant to imipenem. The isolates were classified into 21 pulsotypes by PFGE profiles. The present study shows that typical and atypical EPEC isolates displayed considerable heterogeneity in PFGE profiles and EPEC infections were only sporadic in Tehran. Overall 69 % of isolates were resistant to at least one of the antibiotics tested.
Department of Microbiology, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, PO Box 14155-6447, Tehran 14174, Iran.
Farrokh Akbari
FA
Nakhjavani
Department of Microbiology, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, PO Box 14155-6447, Tehran 14174, Iran.
Mohammad
M
Emaneini
Department of Microbiology, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, PO Box 14155-6447, Tehran 14174, Iran.
Hossein
H
Hosseini
School of ECE, College of Engineering, University of Tehran, PO Box 11365-4563, Tehran 14174, Iran.
Hossein
H
Iman-Eini
Department of Microbiology, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, PO Box 14155-6447, Tehran 14174, Iran.
Marzieh
M
Aligholi
Department of Microbiology, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, PO Box 14155-6447, Tehran 14174, Iran.
Fereshteh
F
Jabalameli
Department of Pathology, Children's Medical Center, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, PO Box 14155-6447, Tehran 14174, Iran.
Mohammad Taghi
MT
Haghi-Ashtiani
Department of Microbiology, School of Medicine, Ilam University of Medical Sciences, Ilam 69315, Iran.
Morovat
M
Taherikalani
Department of Microbiology, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, PO Box 14155-6447, Tehran 14174, Iran.
Akbar
A
Mirsalehian
D018829:Adhesins, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics; D003967:Diarrhea / Q000382:microbiology*; D024901:Drug Resistance, Multiple, Bacterial; D054308:Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D004927:Escherichia coli Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology*; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D005243:Feces / Q000382:microbiology*; D036781:Fimbriae Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D022621:Shiga Toxin / Q000235:genetics
D018829:Adhesins, Bacterial; C104901:BfpA protein, E coli; D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; C073819:eaeA protein, E coli; D036781:Fimbriae Proteins; D022621:Shiga Toxin