Development of a rapid immunochromatographic test to identify enteropathogenic and enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli by detecting EspB.

A rapid immunochromatographic (IC) test to identify enteropathogenic and enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EPEC and EHEC, respectively) was developed to detect EspB secreted by the type III secretion system of these bacteria. The detection limit of the test system was 4 ng/mL. All 33 of 34 strains harboring the eae gene encoding intimin were positive in the IC test, and all 40 of the eae-negative strains were negative.

A Vibrio cholerae protease needed for killing of Caenorhabditis elegans has a role in protection from natural predator grazing.

Vibrio cholerae is the causal bacterium of the diarrheal disease cholera, and its growth and survival are thought to be curtailed by bacteriovorous predators, e.g., ciliates and flagellates.

Characterization of Salmonella isolated in Okinawa, Japan.

Salmonella enterica strains isolated in Okinawa between 1995 and 2005 were analyzed with respect to their serovars and antimicrobial susceptibility, and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) was used to examine their digestion patterns. A total of 1,071 isolates, including 610 from humans, 358 from animal rectal swabs and 103 from meat obtained at grocery stores, were examined. The first 3 most frequent serovars in human isolates were Enteritidis, Weltevreden and Bareilly, together accounting for 65% of the isolates.

[Symptoms of food-borne diseases and gastroenteritis in Kyushu, Japan].

In this study we analyzed the symptoms of gastroenteritis or food-borne disease caused by the 10 most prevalent pathogens: Norovirus, Salmonella, Vibrio parahaemolyticus, Campylobacter jejuni, Clostridium perfringens, Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC), enterotoxigenic E. coli (ETEC), Shigella sonnei/flexneri (Shigella), Staphylococcus aureus, and emetic-type Bacillus cereus. The symptoms diarrhea, vomiting, fever, abdominal pain, and headache, and the incubation period in 646 cases in 10 districts of Kyushu between January 2000 and December 2004 were recorded.

Short report: isolation of Escherichia coli O157:H7 from fecal samples of cows in Vietnam.

Enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli O157:H7 was isolated for the first time in Vietnam. Shiga toxin-producing E. coli were isolated from 8 of 100 cows examined.

The long polar fimbriae genes identified in Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli are present in other diarrheagenic E. coli and in the standard E. coli collection of reference (ECOR) strains.

Long polar fimbriae (LPF) are related to type I fimbriae in genetic organization and were first identified in Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium. Four lpfA genetic variants designated lpfA(O157/OI-141), lpfA(O157/OI-154), lpfA(O26) and lpfA(O113) have been identified in Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC). In this study, PCR was employed to determine the distribution of STEC-lpfAs in enteropathogenic, enteroaggregative, enterotoxigenic and enteroinvasive E.

Pathogenicity of Shigella in healthy carriers: a study in Vientiane, Lao People's Democratic Republic.

Shigella spp. isolated from diarrheal patients and non-diarrheal carriers were examined by PCR for the presence of two pathogenic genes, chromosomal ipaH and invasive plasmid encoded ial. Shigella spp.

Oxalate-degrading Providencia rettgeri isolated from human stools.

Background: Oxalate-degrading bacteria are thought to metabolize intestinal oxalate and thus decrease the urinary excretion of oxalate by reducing its intestinal absorption.

Methods: We have isolated several novel oxalate-degrading bacteria from human stools. Oxalate degrading bacteria were investigated to characterize their protein profiles with antibodies against oxalyl-coenzyme A decarboxylase (65 kDa) and formyl-coenzyme A transferase (48 kDa) purified from Oxalobacter formigenes.

The relationship between O-antigens and pathogenic genes of diarrhea-associated Escherichia coli.

To evaluate the serogrouping-based diagnosis of diarrheagenic Escherichia coli, a total of 1,130 strains of E. coli isolated in several countries were studied. The strains were regarded as enterovirulent on the basis of their O-antigens determined using a commercially available kit containing 43 antisera, and the presence of diarrhea-associated genes (eae, stx, aggR, est, elt, ipaH) was evaluated by PCR.

Sensitive and rapid detection of Shigella and enteroinvasive Escherichia coli by a loop-mediated isothermal amplification method.

Here we report a loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) method for detecting Shigella and enteroinvasive Escherichia coli. The target for this LAMP method is the ipaH gene which is carried by both of the pathogens. The LAMP method efficiently detected the gene within 2 h at a minimal amount of bacteria (8 CFU) per reaction.

Distribution of putative adhesins in different seropathotypes of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli.

The distribution of eight putative adhesins that are not encoded in the locus for enterocyte effacement (LEE) in 139 Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) of different serotypes was investigated by PCR. Five of the adhesins (Iha, Efa1, LPF(O157/OI-141), LPF(O157/OI-154), and LPF(O113)) are encoded in regions corresponding to genomic O islands of E. coli EDL933, while the other three adhesins have been reported to be encoded in the STEC megaplasmid of various serotypes (ToxB [O157:H7], Saa [O113:H21], and Sfp [O157:NM]).

Purification and characterization of a novel metalloprotease isolated from Aeromonas caviae.

A novel protease produced by Aeromonas caviae was purified and characterized. The molecular weight of the protease (AP19) was estimated as 19 kDa on SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The protease activity was not inhibited completely by heating at 100 degrees C for 15 min.

Antibiotic resistance conferred by a class I integron and SXT constin in Vibrio cholerae O1 strains isolated in Laos.

Changes in the drug susceptibility pattern were observed in Vibrio cholerae O1 isolated in the Lao People's Democratic Republic during 1993 to 2000. In this study, 50 V. cholerae O1 strains were selected during this period for studying the presence of class I integron and SXT constin.

Aerolysin is activated by metalloprotease in Aeromonas veronii biovar sobria.

Aeromonas veronii is an opportunistic human pathogen that causes diarrhoea and extraintestinal infections, such as wound infection and septicaemia. An A. veronii protease (AVP) from a biovar sobria strain, AeG1, was partially purified and characterized.

An Aeromonas veronii biovar sobria infection with disseminated intravascular gas production.

We report a case of Aeromonas veronii biovar sobria infection with disseminated intravascular gas production. The patient was an afebrile 15-year-old girl who had been quite healthy until the onset of the illness. She came to the hospital because of a 6-h history of increasing pain and swelling in her left thigh.

The incidence of Escherichia coli having pathogenic genes for diarrhea: a study in the People's Democratic Republic of Lao.

The incidence of Escherichia coli having pathogenic genes for diarrhea was studied in Laos in 2002. A total of 525 E. coli strains from 278 patients (basically, two E.

Multiplex PCR assay for identification of human diarrheagenic Escherichia coli.

A multiplex PCR assay for the identification of human diarrheagenic Escherichia coli was developed. The targets selected for each category were eae for enteropathogenic E. coli, stx for Shiga toxin-producing E.

Live varicella vaccine polarizes the mucosal adjuvant action of cholera toxin or its B subunit on specific Th1-type helper T cells with a single nasal coadministration in mice.

This study was undertaken to determine whether the specific Th1- or Th2-cell response to varicella-zoster virus was induced predominantly by a mucosal adjuvant, cholera toxin, in mice. A commercially available live varicella vaccine (Oka strain) and cholera toxin or its B subunit were administered simultaneously via the nasal route. Delayed-type hypersensitivity to the Oka vaccine was induced, but the systemic neutralizing antibody response was low.

Molecular analysis of VcfQ protein involved in Vibrio cholerae type IV pilus biogenesis.

The nucleotide sequence of an ORF (vcfQ) within the type IV pilus gene cluster of Vibrio cholerae O34 strain NAGV14 was determined, thereby completing the sequence analysis of the structural operon. The vcfQ gene showed homology to the mshQ gene of the mannose-sensitive haemagglutinin pilus gene cluster. The vcfQ was 651 bp larger than mshQ, and the G+C content of the extra 651 bp portion (35.

Comparison of antimicrobial susceptibility between invasive and non-invasive Shigella organisms.

Antimicrobial susceptibility was determined for ten strains of Shigella spp. comparing invasive (invasion plasmid containing) and non-invasive members of each strain. The activity of the antimicrobial agents could be classified into three types from the differences between the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) for the invasive and non-invasive shigellae.

Enteroaggregative Escherichia coli: incidence in Japan and usefulness of the clump-formation test.

The usefulness of the clump-formation test described by Albert et al. for identifying enteroaggregative Escherichia coli (EAggEC) and the incidence of EAggEC in Japan were studied. One hundred and seventy strains of E.

Staphylococcus aureus isolated from hospital staff: a comparative study of Laos and Japan.

Staphylococcus aureus isolated from hospital staff (nurses and doctors) in Laos were characterized for future reference and for comparison with organisms found in Okinawa, Japan. No methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA), among 38 isolates examined, was found in Laos, but 16 of 36 Japanese isolates (44%) were identified as MRSA.

Detection of EspB using reversed passive latex agglutination: application to determination of enteropathogenic Escherichia coli.

We developed a new practical method to identify enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC) by detecting the pathogenic factor, EspB. E. coli were cultured in Dulbecco's Modification of Eagle's Medium (DMEM), and EspB was detected in the culture supernatant by reversed passive latex agglutination (RPLA).

Minor pilin subunits are conserved in Vibrio cholerae type IV pili.

The nucleotide sequences of five open reading frames within the Vibrio cholerae NAGV14 type IV pilus gene cluster were determined. The genes showed high homology to the mannose-sensitive hemagglutinin (MSHA) pilus genes mshB, mshC, mshD, mshO and mshP. PCR analysis showed that a MSHA-like gene cluster is highly conserved among different V.