An international outbreak of Vero cytotoxin-producing 
<i>Escherichia coli</i> O157 infection amongst tourists; a challenge 
for the European infectious disease surveillance network

Pebody, Richard; Furtado, Celso; Rojas, A; McCarthy, Noel D.; Nylén, Gunnar; Ruutu, Petri; Leino, Tuija; Chalmers, Rachel M.; Jong, B de; Donnelly, Martin J.; Fisher, I. S.T.; Gilham, Clare; Graverson, L.; Cheasty, T.; Willshaw, G. A.; Navarro, Marli B. M. de Albuquerque; Salmon, R. L.; Leinikki, Pauli; Wall, Patrick; Bartlett, Chris

doi:10.1017/s0950268899002940

Cited by 45 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 27 publications

(25 reference statements)

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…There were ®ve outbreaks in which the VTEC O157 strain was acquired abroad. One of these occurred in Fuerteventura in 1997 and was probably caused by consumption of water from a contaminated well [39]; the others involved travel to Greece (two outbreaks), Majorca (one outbreak) and Lanzarote (one outbreak), but the sources of infection were unknown.…”

Section: Outbreaks Of Infection With Vtec O157mentioning

confidence: 99%

Verocytotoxin-producing Escherichia coli (VTEC) O157 and other VTEC from human infections in England and Wales: 1995–1998

Willshaw¹,

Cheasty²,

Smith³

et al. 2001

Journal of Medical Microbiology

Self Cite

116

126

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

A total of 3429 isolations of verocytotoxin-producing Escherichia coli O157 (VTEC O157) was con®rmed from human sources in England and Wales during the period 1995±1998. The largest annual total was 1087 in 1997. Most infections occurred in the third quarter of each year. The overall rate of infection ranged from 1.28 to 2.10=100 000 population and showed regional variation. The highest incidence was in children aged 1±4 years. Annually, between 5% and 11% of strains were from patients who had travelled abroad. There were 67 general outbreaks of infection represented by 407 (11.9%) VTEC O157 isolates. Outbreaks involved transmission by contaminated food or water, person-toperson spread and direct or indirect animal contact, and ®ve were associated with foreign travel. The majority (76%) of strains carried verocytotoxin (VT) 2 genes and 23.3% were VT1 VT2. Most strains had the¯agellar antigen H7, but c. 14% were non-motile. Approximately 20% of isolates were resistant to antimicrobial agents, predominantly streptomycin, sulphonamides and tetracycline. In addition to VTEC O157, strains of serogroup O157 that did not possess VT genes were identi®ed. These were either derivatives of VTEC O157 that had lost VT genes or were strains with H antigens other than H7 that have never been associated with VT production. Strains of VTEC other than O157 were characterised. Most were associated with diarrhoea, bloody diarrhoea or haemolytic uraemic syndrome and had virulence markers in addition to VT.

show abstract

Section: Outbreaks Of Infection With Vtec O157mentioning

confidence: 99%

Verocytotoxin-producing Escherichia coli (VTEC) O157 and other VTEC from human infections in England and Wales: 1995–1998

Willshaw¹,

Cheasty²,

Smith³

et al. 2001

Journal of Medical Microbiology

Self Cite

116

126

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Transmission of E. coli O157:H7 from cattle to humans occurs via foodborne and waterborne routes (3)(4)(5). Although E. coli O157:H7 strains occur in other animals, cattle have the highest known prevalence (1,2,6).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Cattle lack vascular receptors for Escherichia coli O157:H7 Shiga toxins

Pruimboom‐Brees

Morgan

Ackermann

et al. 2000

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

175

143

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Escherichia coli O157:H7 causes Shiga toxin (Stx)-mediated vascular damage, resulting in hemorrhagic colitis and the hemolytic uremic syndrome in humans. These infections are often foodborne, and healthy carrier cattle are a major reservoir of E. coli O157:H7. We were interested in knowing why cattle are tolerant to infection with E. coli O157:H7. Cattle tissues were examined for the Stx receptor globotriaosylceramide (Gb3), for receptivity to Stx binding in vitro, and for susceptibility to the enterotoxic effects of Stx in vivo. TLC was used to detect Gb3 in tissues from a newborn calf. Gb3 was detected by TLC in kidney and brain, but not in the gastrointestinal tract. Immunohistochemistry was used to define binding of Stx1 and Stx2 overlaid onto sections from cattle tissues. Stx1 and Stx2 bound to selected tubules in the cortex of the kidney of both newborn calves (n ‫؍‬ 3) and adult cattle (n ‫؍‬ 3). Stx did not bind to blood vessels in any of the six gastrointestinal and five extraintestinal organs examined. The lack of Gb3 and of Stx receptivity in the gastrointestinal tract raised questions about the toxicity of Stx in bovine intestine. We found that neither viable E. coli O157:H7 nor Stx-containing bacterial extracts were enterotoxic (caused fluid accumulation) in ligated ileal loops in newborn calves. The lack of vascular receptors for Stx provides insight into why cattle are tolerant reservoir hosts for E. coli O157:H7.

show abstract

“…A farm well survey in the province of Alberta, Canada, found that approximately 60% of rural residents in Alberta (490 of 816) had not tested their well water in the last 5 years, or ever (Fitzgerald et al 2001). This is alarming, since drinking water-associated outbreaks from rural or private drinking water sources have been well documented in North America (Starko et al 1986;Dev et al 1991;Duke et al 1996;Furtado et al 1998;Pebody et al 1999). …”

Section: Water Quality and Waterborne Diseasementioning

confidence: 99%

Waterborne disease: an old foe re-emerging?

Neumann¹,

Smith²,

Belosevic³

2005

Journal of Environmental Engineering and Science

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In developed countries, clean and safe drinking water is taken for granted, and water treatment processes used to mass-produce drinking water have been hailed as one of the top five engineering achievements of the 20th century. However, in the last decade, several waterborne disease outbreaks have made us painfully aware of the personal, economical, societal, and public health costs associated with the impact of waterborne disease. There is evidence to suggest that the prevalence of waterborne disease may be dramatically underestimated in developed countries and that routine endemic exposure to waterborne pathogens may occur more frequently than originally perceived. A variety of demographical, societal, environmental, and physiological emergence factors likely play critical roles in enhancing the frequency of transmission of pathogens to hosts. This review focuses on the scope and impact of waterborne disease in developed countries and identifies issues surrounding the potential for rapid global emergence or re-emergence of waterborne disease. We examine relevant literature on Cryptosporidium parvum and Escherichia coli O157 as model organisms of study that support these concepts.Résumé : Dans les pays développés, l'eau potable propre et sécuritaire est prise pour acquis et les procédés de traitement de l'eau utilisés pour produire l'eau potable en grande quantité sont considérés comme étant l'une des cinq plus grandes réalisations d'ingénierie du XX e siècle. Cependant, au cours de la dernière décennie, plusieurs poussées épidémiques de maladies d'origine hydrique nous ont ramené douloureusement à la réalité des coûts personnels, économiques, sociaux et de santé publique associés à l'impact des maladies d'origine hydrique. Selon certains évidences, la prévalence de maladies d'origine hydrique peut être énormément sous-estimée dans les pays développés et (que) l'exposition endémique courante aux pathogènes d'origine hydrique peut survenir plus fréquemment que prévu initialement. Divers facteurs d'émergence démographiques, sociaux, environnementaux et physiologiques jouent un rôle important dans l'accroissement de la fréquence de la transmission de pathogènes aux hôtes. La présente revue examine la portée et l'impact des maladies d'origine hydrique dans les pays développés et identifie les questions entourant le potentiel d'émergence ou de réémergence mondiale rapide des maladies d'origine hydrique. Nous examinons la littérature pertinente sur le Cryptosporidium parvum et Escherichia coli O157 comme organismes modèles de l'étude qui soutient ces concepts.

show abstract

An international outbreak of Vero cytotoxin-producing Escherichia coli O157 infection amongst tourists; a challenge for the European infectious disease surveillance network

Cited by 45 publications

References 27 publications

Verocytotoxin-producing Escherichia coli (VTEC) O157 and other VTEC from human infections in England and Wales: 1995–1998

Verocytotoxin-producing Escherichia coli (VTEC) O157 and other VTEC from human infections in England and Wales: 1995–1998

Cattle lack vascular receptors for Escherichia coli O157:H7 Shiga toxins

Waterborne disease: an old foe re-emerging?

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About