Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) is a food-borne pathogen with a low infectious dose that colonizes the colon in humans and can cause severe clinical manifestations such as hemolytic-uremic syndrome. The urease enzyme, encoded in the STEC chromosome, has been demonstrated to act as a virulence factor in other bacterial pathogens. The NH(3) produced as urease hydrolyzes urea can aid...

BACKGROUND In 2008, children playing on a soccer field in Colorado were sickened with a strain of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) O157:H7, which was ultimately linked to feces from wild Rocky Mountain elk. We addressed whether wild cervids were a potential source of STEC infections in humans and whether STEC was ubiquitous throughout wild cervid populations in Colorado. METHODOL...

The objective of this study was to determine the effect of immersing beef cheek meat in antimicrobial solutions on the reduction of O157:H7 Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC), non-O157:H7 STEC, and Salmonella enterica. Beef cheek meat was inoculated with O157:H7 STEC, non-O157:H7 STEC, and S. enterica on both the adipose and muscle surfaces. The inoculated cheek meat was then immerse...

Serogroup classifications based upon the O-somatic antigen of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) provide significant epidemiological information on clinical isolates. Each O-antigen determinant is encoded by a unique cluster of genes present between the gnd and galF chromosomal genes. Alternatively, serogroup-specific polymorphisms might be encoded in loci that are encoded outside of...

BACKGROUND Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) O157:H7 is a well-recognized cause of bloody diarrhea and hemolytic-uremic syndrome (HUS). Non-O157 STEC contribute to this burden of illness but have been underrecognized as a result of diagnostic limitations and inadequate surveillance. METHODS Between 1983 and 2002, 43 state public health laboratories submitted 940 human non-O157 STE...

The present study was conducted to detect the occurrence, serotype, genotype, phylogenetic relationship and antimicrobial resistance pattern of STEC from healthy goats of West Bengal, India. From the 125 faecal samples collected from healthy goats, 245 isolates were identified as Escherichia coli. The E. coli harbouring any gene for Shiga toxins (stx1/stx2) was detected in 36 (14.7%) of the 245...

Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) cause infections in humans ranging from asymptomatic carriage to bloody diarrhoea and haemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS). Here we present whole genome comparison of Norwegian non-O157 STEC strains with the aim to distinguish between strains with the potential to cause HUS and less virulent strains. Whole genome sequencing and comparisons were performe...

Shiga-toxigenic Escherichia coli (STEC) strains were isolated from a variety of fresh produce, but mostly from spinach, with an estimated prevalence rate of 0.5%. A panel of 132 produce STEC strains were characterized for the presence of virulence and putative virulence factor genes and for Shiga toxin subtypes. About 9% of the isolates were found to have the eae gene, which encodes the intimin...

Escherichia coli O157:H7 is a Shiga toxin (stx)-producing E. coli (STEC) strain that has been classified as an adulterant in U.S. beef. However, numerous other non-O157 STEC strains are associated with diseases of various severities and have become an increasing concern to the beef industry, regulatory officials, and the public. This study reports on the prevalence and characterization of non-O...

Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) are responsible for gastrointestinal diseases reported in numerous outbreaks around the world. Given the public health importance of STEC, effective detection, characterization and typing is critical to any medical laboratory system. While non-O157 serotypes account for the majority of STEC infections, frontline microbiology laboratories may only sc...