Shiga toxins produced by enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC) include Shiga toxin 1 (Stx1) as well as Shiga toxin 2 (Stx2). Stx1 is cell associated, whereas Stx2 is localized to the culture supernatant. We have analyzed the secretion of Stx2 by generating histidine-tagged StxB (StxB-H). Although neither StxB1-H nor StxB2-H was secreted in StxB-H-overexpressed EHEC, StxB2-H-overexpressed EH...

Molly M. Leeper Trends in Toxin Profiles of Human Shiga Toxin-Producing Escherchia coli (STEC) O157 Strains, United States, 1996-2008 (Under the direction of Dr. Karen Gieseker, faculty member) Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) cause diarrhea, hemorrhagic colitis, and hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS). All STEC produce one or both of two Shiga toxins, Stx1 and Stx2. STEC strains that produce S...

The cellular entry of the bacterial Shiga toxin and the related verotoxins has been scrutinized in quite some detail. This is due to their importance as a threat to human health. At the same time, the study of Shiga toxin has allowed the discovery of novel molecular mechanisms that also apply to the intracellular trafficking of endogenous proteins at the plasma membrane and in the endosomal sys...

This study examined Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) O157, using phage typing, pulsed-field gel electrophoresis, and typing of Shiga toxin variant genes by PCR with restriction fragment length polymorphism in an epidemiological survey of STEC O157 isolated from humans in Finland between 1990 and 1999.

We report the first Shiga toxin 2-producing Acinetobacter haemolyticus strain that was isolated from the feces of a 3-month-old infant with bloody diarrhea. Usual enteropathogenic bacteria were not detected. This finding suggests that any Shiga toxin-producing microorganism capable of colonizing the human gut may have the potential to cause illness.

When 3,972 ground beef enrichments with 6 confirmed to contain a non-O157 Shiga toxin-producing intimin-positive Escherichia coli isolate were tested for Shiga toxin, intimin, and O group (O26, O45, O103, O111, O121, and O145) genes, 183 potential positives and only 2 of the 6 confirmed positives were identified.

We investigated an outbreak of non-O157 Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli at a high school in Minnesota, USA, in November 2010. Consuming undercooked venison and not washing hands after handling raw venison were associated with illness. E. coli O103:H2 and non-Shiga toxin-producing E. coli O145:NM were isolated from ill students and venison.

Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) causes severe illness in humans, including hemorrhagic colitis and hemolytic uremic syndrome. A parallel evolutionary model was proposed in which E. coli strains of distinct phylogenies independently integrate Shiga toxin-encoding genes and evolve into STEC. We report the draft genomes of two emerging non-O157 STEC strains.

Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli O84 isolates (n = 22) were examined using culture- and molecularly based methods in order to compare their phenotypic and genotypic characteristics. These analyses directly linked Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli O84 isolates from cattle and sheep with human isolates indicating that New Zealand livestock may be a reservoir of infection.

In the context of a large outbreak of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli O104:H4 in Germany, we quantified the timeliness of the German surveillance system for hemolytic uremic syndrome and Shiga toxin-producing E. coli notifiable diseases during 2003-2011. Although reporting occurred faster than required by law, potential for improvement exists at all levels of the information chain.