Are all infections with Escherichia coli O157 associated with cattle?
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Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to H Chart.
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Growth of strains of Salmonella enteritidis and Salmonella pullorum on Hektoen agar has been reported to influence the expression of long-chain lipopolysaccharide and motility respectively. In this study we used a panel of strains of S. enteritidis and S. pullorum to investigate these phenomena. Culture on Hektoen agar did not cause rough strains of S. enteritidis to express long-chain lipopolysaccharide or strains of S. pullorum to become motile. It was concluded that growth of strains of S. enteritidis and S. pullorum on Hektoen agar would not normally affect the expression of somatic or flagellar antigens, and would not influence the interpretation of the Kauffman-White typing scheme.
Certain strains of enteroaggregative Escherichia coli express an outer membrane-associated protein, involved with the adhesion of these bacteria to HEp-2 cells. Strains of enteroaggregative E. coli hybridising with DNA probes for aggregative adhesion, diffuse adhesion and aggregative adhesion fimbriac II expressed an outer membrane-associated protein of 18 kDa regulated by magnesium ions. Strains hybridising with the aggregative adhesion probe only expressed a 20-kDa outer membrane-associated protein regulated by calcium and magnesium. The present study describes two populations of enteroaggregative E. coli which appear to adhere to HEp-2 cells by expressing antigenically distinct, negatively charged membrane-associated proteins.
Certain strains of verotoxigenic Escherichia coli (VTEC), and in particular those belonging to serogroup O157, cause attaching and effacing (AE) lesions of the host gut mucosa during pathogenesis. The mechanisms involved with bacterial attachment and the destruction of microvilli are determined by a cluster of genes within the LEE region, which also encode five secreted proteins. Sera from patients with antibodies to the lipopolysaccharide (LPS) of E. coli O157 and other VTEC were tested for antibodies to these secreted proteins. Twenty-one of 34 (62%) sera with antibodies to the lipopolysaccharide (LPS) of E. coli O157 also contained antibodies to one or more of the secreted proteins. Five of 12 sera containing antibodies to the LPS of a range of other VTEC serogroups also contained antibodies to 1 or more of the 5 secreted proteins, as did 16 of 70 (23%) sera from patients with haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS), haemorrhagic colitis (HC) or diarrhoea, but without bacteriological evidence of infection with VTEC and which did not contain antibodies to VTEC serogroups O5, O115, O145, O153 or O157. The detection of serum antibodies to secreted proteins may provide additional information for interpreting the results of established lipopolysaccharide-based VTEC serology.
Enteroaggregative Escherichia coli (EAggEC) are a group of E. coli characterized by the ability to adhere to cultured cell monolayers with an aggregative or 'stacked brick' adhesion phenotype. These strains of E. coli are distinct from other pathogenic groups of E. coli. Epidemiological evidence suggests that strains of EAggEC are a significant cause of protracted diarrhoea in children, and may cause diarrhoea in adults. The group is heterogeneous, comprising a diverse range of serotypes that possess a variety of putative virulence factors. These include an enterotoxin similar to the heat-stable enterotoxin of enterotoxigenic E. coli, putative haemolysins and toxins, and various types of fimbriae and outer membrane proteins that may be involved in the adhesion process. The role of these factors in the production of disease is unclear. Diagnosis of EAggEC infection is problematic; serotyping alone cannot identify strains of E. coli expressing an EAggEC phenotype. Currently, EAggEC are identified by either cell adhesion tests or DNA-based tests involving gene probes or polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for detecting the genes encoding cell adhesion. The nature and significance of strains of E. coli expressing an EAggEC phenotype are poorly understood. This article reviews the current literature and speculates on the direction of future studies to define this emerging group of bacteria.
Intra-strain variation in the expression of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) by two clinical isolates of Helicobacter pylori was examined. Lipopolysaccharide was prepared from successive cultures of individual colonies from each strain, separated by SDS-PAGE, and detected by silver staining and by immunoblotting. The genetic 'relatedness' of the colonies was investigated using PCR-RFLP analysis of the urease and vacuolating cytotoxin genes. Although individual colonies of each of the two strains examined appeared to have the same genetic origins, variation in the expression of their long-chain LPS was observed. The same LPS profiles were maintained by individual colonies over four subcultures on solid media containing 10% (v/v) defibrinated horse blood.
An analysis of farm workers and rural dwellers for serum antibodies to the lipopolysaccharide (LPS) of Escherichia coli O157 detected sera with antibodies binding to bovine serum albumin (BSA) by ELISA. These antibodies were not specific for BSA when examined by immunoblotting, and the ELISA values were reduced to a background level when plates were blocked with normal rabbit serum.
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AIMS: To compare the established Widal agglutination assay with an immunoblotting procedure. METHODS: 110 sera were used to compare the established Widal agglutination assay with an immunoblotting procedure incorporating lipopolysaccharide (LPS) (O = 9,12) and flagellar (H = d) antigens. RESULTS: Antibodies to the LPS antigens were detected in 18 sera by the Widal assay and in 37 by immunoblotting. Antibodies to the flagellar antigens were detected in 27 sera by Widal assay and in 25 by immunoblotting. CONCLUSIONS: An immunoblotting procedure incorporating O = 9,12 LPS and H = d flagellar antigens was rapid and more sensitive than the established Widal agglutination assay for providing evidence of infection with S typhi.
AIMS: To use serology to investigate an outbreak of verocytotoxin (VT) producing Escherichia coli O157 in a hospital nursery, following the detection of faecal E coli O157 (phage type 49) producing VT type 2. METHODS: ELISA and immunoblotting techniques, based on lipopolysaccharide (LPS) purified from E coli O157; diagnostic bacteriology; serotyping and phage typing; DNA probes for VT. RESULTS: 29 of 126 sera contained antibodies to the LPS of E coli O157: 10 were from children, three were from staff, and 11 were from hospital kitchen staff. Five parents of children attending the nursery were antibody positive. Sixty four sera from other hospital staff and controls did not contain antibodies to the LPS of E coli O157. CONCLUSIONS: Serology detected evidence of infection with E coli O157 in 23% of sera examined. By bacteriology alone, only a single case of infection with E coli O157 would have been detected. Serology is valuable in providing evidence of infection with E coli O157.
Vero cytotoxin producing Escherichia coli (VTEC)--including all those of serogroup O157--and enteropathogenic E. coli produce attaching and effacing lesions in gut epithelium. Immunoblotting was used to detect antibodies to secreted proteins associated with the formation of these lesions. These tests should provide additional evidence of VTEC infection in conjunction with current assays for antibioties to E. coli O157 lipopolysaccharide.
Enteroaggregative strains of Escherichia coli, belonging to serotypes O44:H18 and O126:H27, were used to show that magnesium ions were essential for the adhesion of these enteroaggregative strains to HEp-2 cells. The removal of Mg2+ ions from culture media was correlated with the inability of strains to produce an outer membrane-associated protein of 18 kDa and a pellicle. It was concluded that magnesium ions were directly involved with the expression of an 18 kDa outer membrane-associated protein by strains of E. coli O126:H27 and O44:H18, and that the outer membrane-associated protein was involved in both HEp-2 adhesion and pellicle formation.
Twenty-nine strains of Escherichia coli that adhere to HEp-2 cells with a 'stacked brick' pattern (EAggEC), and four nonadherent control strains, were examined for the ability to hybridize with gene probes for aggregative (AA) and diffuse (DA) HEp-2 cell adhesion phenotypes. These strains were also tested for the ability to express an 18 kDa membrane-associated outer-membrane protein (MAP), to agglutinate erythrocytes, and to produce a pellicle during broth culture. Thirteen of the 29 HEp-2 adherent strains of E. coli hybridized with the gene probes for both AA and DA, and expressed an 18 kDa outer membrane protein (OMP) which was antigenically related to the MAP expressed by strains of E. coli O126:H27. The strains that did not carry the additional DA genes did not express an 18 kDa OMP. Although strains of EAggEC share the ability to adhere to HEp-2 cells with a stacked brick pattern, these strains exhibit a diverse range of physical and biochemical properties. From the results of this study, it was concluded that currently, the possession of EAggEC genes or the ability to adhere to HEp-2 cells in a stacked brick formation, remain the only reliable means of identifying EAggEC.
Certain strains of enteroaggregative Escherichia coli cause detachment of HEp-2 cells during adhesion tests, preventing observation of the aggregative adherent phenotype. The use of formalin-fixed HEp-2 cells prevents cell detachment and facilitates the detection of enteroaggregative E. coli.
AIMS: To evaluate a rapid immunoblotting procedure for providing evidence of infection with Salmonella typhi using 73 sera from patients infected with S typhi. METHODS: A sodium dodecyl sulphatepolyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE)/immunoblotting procedure using lipopolysaccharide (LPS, O = 9,12) and flagellar (H = d) antigens was used. RESULTS: Seventy two of 73 sera contained antibodies to LPS, 40 sera also contained antibodies to H = d flagellar antigens. Analysis of acute and convalescent sera showed that only 62% of patients produced antibodies to flagellar antigens. CONCLUSIONS: The SDS-PAGE/immunoblotting procedure provided a rapid method for providing serological evidence of infection with S typhi.
A type of in vivo phenotype of Campylobacter jejuni was obtained by maintaining bacteria in the peritoneal cavities of chickens for one week. These bacteria, which had not been subcultured on laboratory media, were used to prepare outer membranes for comparison with C. jejuni grown in vitro. Flagella with subunits of 65 kDa and a single porin with a protein subunit of 49 kDa were expressed constitutively; however, outer membrane proteins of 55, 35 and 20 kDa, and intermediate-chain lipopolysaccharide were only expressed by bacteria maintained in chickens.