A Comparison of the Survival in Feces and Water of Escherichia coli O157:H7 Grown under Laboratory Conditions or Obtained from Cattle Feces

Abstract

Escherichia coli O157:H7 is an important foodborne pathogen that can cause hemorrhagic colitis and hemolytic uremic syndrome. Cattle feces and fecally contaminated water are important in the transmission of this organism on the farm. In this study, the survival of E. coli O157:H7 in feces and water was compared following passage through the animal digestive tract or preparation in the laboratory. Feces were collected from steers before and after oral inoculation with a marked strain of E. coli O157:H7. Fecal samples collected before cattle inoculation were subsequently inoculated with the marked strain of E. coli O157:H7 prepared in the laboratory. Subsamples were taken from both animal and laboratory-inoculated feces to inoculate 5-liter volumes of water. E. coli O157:H7 in feces survived up to 97 days, and survival was not affected by the method used to prepare the inoculating strain. E. coli O157:H7 survived up to 109 days in water, and the bacteria collected from inoculated cattle were detected up to 10 weeks longer than the laboratory-prepared culture. This study suggests that pathogen survival in low-nutrient conditions may be enhanced by passage through the gastrointestinal tract.

Prevalence of Shiga Toxin-Producing Escherichia coli stx 1 , stx 2 , eaeA , and rfbE Genes and Survival of E. coli O157:H7 in Manure from Organic and Low-Input Conventional Dairy Farms

“…Kudva et al (33) reported no differences in survival in bovine manure and manure slurry between toxin-positive (Stx1 ϩ Stx2 ϩ ) and toxin-negative (Stx1 Ϫ Stx2 Ϫ ) E. coli O157:H7 strains. In addition, survival in manure of E. coli O157:H7 that passed the intestinal tract of cattle was not different from the survival of the same strain directly inoculated into the manure (48). Bacteria were stored at Ϫ80°C and checked for viability prior to use by growing on Luria-Bertani medium supplemented with ampicillin (50 g ml Ϫ1 ).…”

STEC in the beef chain: One health approach

“…Studies have shown that E. coli O157:H7 can survive in water for up to 109 days (Scott et al, 2006). Water supplies contaminated with livestock effl uent have been implicated in a number of outbreaks (Locking et al, 2006).…”

Veterinary Public Health Approach to Managing Pathogenic Verocytotoxigenic Escherichia coli in the Agri-Food Chain

“…In addition to temperature, the indigenous microflora (93), scarcity of nutrients (96), and protozoan predations also influence survival. Recent passage of VTEC through the bovine gastrointestinal tract may enhance survival of O157 in water (97).…”

“…However, it should be noted that not all strains belonging to these serogroups will cause severe illness and that other non-O157 VTEC serogroups also cause illness. Pathogenic VTEC strains are categorized as enterohemorrhagic E. coli, and usually in these strains, a large outer membrane protein (94)(95)(96)(97) called intimin mediates the intimate contact between the bacterium and the enterocyte cytoplasmic membrane (attachment) and the destruction of the enterocyte microvilli (effacement). The genetic determinants for this (eae, tir, esc, and sep genes) are grouped together on the chromosome, forming a pathogenicity island called LEE, for locus of enterocyte effacement (7).…”