Three variants of the chloramine-T radioiodination method were used to iodinate staphylococcal enterotoxin A with 125I. Only one method consistently produced usable labels for radioimmunoassay. The iodine incorporation was 55 to 76%; the specific activity was 3.5 to 5.5 muCi/microgram of enterotoxin, and the label was extremely stable on storage at -20 degrees C. Determinations of the enterotox...

OBJECTIVE The role of staphylococcal enterotoxin B (SEB) in food poisoning is well known, however its role in other diseases remains to be explored. The aim of this study is the molecular screening and characterization of the SEB gene in clinically isolated strains. MATERIALS AND METHODS In this experimentally study, 300 Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) strains isolated from clinical samples...

Staphylococcal enterotoxins are exotoxins produced by Staphylococcus aureus that possess emetic and superantigenic properties. Prior to this research there were six characterized enterotoxins, staphylococcal enterotoxin types A to E and H (referred to as SEA to SEE and SEH). Two new staphylococcal enterotoxin genes have been identified and designated seg and sei (staphylococcal enterotoxin type...

A rapid solid-phase radioimmunoassay for staphylococcal enterotoxin A is described. The assay procedure requires 3 to 4 h for completion by using a competitive inhibition system in which the antibody is attached to bromacetyl cellulose particles. It is accurate to a level of 0.01 mug of enterotoxin A/ml in a variety of media such as ham, milk products, crab meat, custard, etc. No significant in...

Cocolonization of human mucosal surfaces causes frequent encounters between various staphylococcal species, creating opportunities for the horizontal acquisition of mobile genetic elements. The majority of Staphylococcus aureus toxins and virulence factors are encoded on S. aureus pathogenicity islands (SaPIs). Horizontal movement of SaPIs between S. aureus strains plays a role in the evolution...

Ingestion of staphylococcal enterotoxins preformed by Staphylococcus aureus in food leads to staphylococcal food poisoning, the most prevalent foodborne intoxication worldwide. There are five major staphylococcal enterotoxins: SEA, SEB, SEC, SED, and SEE. While variants of these toxins have been described and were linked to specific hosts or levels or enterotoxin production, data on sequence va...

Neutrophils have been shown to express major histocompatibility complex class II (MHC II) after stimulation. However, reports concerning the functional effect of MCH II expression are still lacking. In our hands, granulocyte-monocyte colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) alone and in combination with interferon (IFN)-gamma, but not IFN-gamma or interleukin (IL)-3, induced a significant level of ex...

Background and Aims: Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) is considered as one of the most dangerous pathogenic bacteria due to the production of extracellular toxins. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of S. aureus and to characterize the recovered strains for their enterotoxin-producing genes in raw cow milk. Materials and Methods: During 9 months duration of the s...

Preliminary attempts were made to explain the association of staphylococcal food poisoning with cooked rather than uncooked meats. The abilities of various meats to support the growth of an enterotoxigenic staphylococcus, and the production of enterotoxin A, were determined. The production of enterotoxin was detected by means of serological procedures. Little or no growth was obtained when the ...