Prevalence and molecular characterization of Shiga toxin-producing escherichia coli isolates from human and sheep in Al-Madinah Al-Munawarah

Abstract

Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) strains have emerged as important foodborne pathogens of global public health concern, causing life-threatening diseases. Sheep and their products have been documented as important reservoirs for STECs, especially E. coli O157. The aim of this study was to investigate STECs from diarrheal human and sheep in Al-Madinah Al-Munawarah, Saudi Arabia. Fecal samples were collected between June and August, 2015 from diarrheal humans (n = 134) and sheep (n = 87). Presumptive E. coli human-and sheep-isolated strains were identified for their serotypes, the associated virulence genes (Shiga toxin [stx 1 , stx 2 ], haemolysin [ehxA] and intimin [eae]) by polymerase chain reaction and their susceptibility to antibiotics. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) was used to demonstrate the genetic relatedness between Serotype O157:H7 human-and sheep-isolated strains. Forty eight (48/221; 21.7%) STECs were recovered from both human and sheep, their serotypes were as follows: O157:H7, O26:H11, O157:HNM, O26:HNM, O128:H2, O48:HNM, O111:HNM and OUT:HUT. Various virulence profiles and multiple antibiotic resistance were observed among the isolates. Twenty eight O157:H7 serotypes (17 human isolates and 11 sheep isolates) were identified in 13 PFGE pulsotypes, where human and sheep isolates were highly related. PFGE banding profiles together with serotypes and genotypes afford proof that human and sheep can be colonized and infected with similar E. coli O157:H7 strains. Our findings highlight the importance of epidemiological and microbiological surveillance of STECs; as well as the development of control measures to decrease risks associated with zoonotic O157:H7.Keywords: Shigatoxin E. coli; Human; Sheep; Goats Prevalencia y caracterización molecular de cepas de Escherichia coli productoras de toxina Shiga en seres humanos y ovejas de Al-Medina Al-Munawarah ResumenLas cepas de Escherichia coli (E. coli) productoras de toxina Shiga (STEC, del inglés Shiga toxin-producing E. coli) han surgido como importantes agentes patógenos de origen alimentario que son motivo de preocupación para la salud pública mundial, ya que provocan enfermedades potencialmente mortales. Se ha confirmado que las ovejas y sus productos son reservorios importantes para la STEC, especialmente E. coli O157. El objetivo de este estudio fue investigar STEC procedentes de deposiciones diarreicas humanas y ovinas en Al-Medina Al-Munawarah (Arabia Saudí). Se recogieron muestras fecales entre junio y agosto de 2015 de deposiciones diarreicas humanas (n = 134) y ovinas (n = 87). Se identificaron las presuntas cepas de E. coli humanas y ovinas por sus serotipos, los genes de virulencia asociados (toxina Shiga [stx1, stx2], hemolisina [ehxA] e intimina [eae]) por reacción en cadena de la polimerasa y la susceptibilidad a los antibióticos. Se utilizó la electroforesis en gel de campo pulsado (EGCP) para demostrar el parentesco genético entre el serotipo O157:H7 de las cepas humanas y el de las ovinas. Se aislaron 48 STE...

Isolation, Molecular Detection and Antimicrobial Susceptibility Profile of ‎Escherichia coli O157:H7 in Household - reared Small Ruminants in Zaria ‎Metropolis, Kaduna State, Nigeria

“…The absence of the stx genes in this study may be attributed to the loss of the stx-phages during storage as stx genes are temperate phage-mediated that may be lost from the bacterial genome (Karch et al, 1992;Lawan et al, 2015). The presence of eaeA and hlyA gene in the study is in agreement with the report of previous studies (Sharaf and Shabana, 2016;Fashina et al, 2018). The presence of the eaeA and hlyA gene in this study is of public health importance as these genes could confer enhanced virulence during infection.…”

The Emergence, Persistence, and Dissemination of Antimicrobial-Resistant Bacteria in Environmental Hajj Settings and Implications for Public Health

“…For carbapenem-resistant P. aeruginosa isolated from patients, 4.1-18.4% carried blaVIM and 4.7-21.0% carried blaIMP [39,42,43]. Shiga toxin-producing E. coli among diarrheal isolates showed 70% resistance to trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole [44]. A number of studies showed different extended-spectrum-β-lactamase (bla) genes that had been identified in the Hajj [23,[35][36][37]45,46] (Table 1).…”

Molecular Detection of the Virulence Genes in Escherichia coli Isolated from Healthy and Diarrheic Calves in Southern Iraq

“…Most of these isolates have at least two or three gene arrangements, and only four isolates show a combination of four genes with profiles of stx1, stx2, hlyA, and afaI. However, many researchers have attempted to correlate the existence of recognized virulence profile factors with a disease or severity of a disease and concluded that no single factor is responsible for the virulence of STEC [46][47][48]. These variations in gene virulence and severity may contribute to the overuse and misuse of antibiotics in intensive animal production as well as in the crowded and stressful conditions of factory farms.…”