Hostname: page-component-848d4c4894-pftt2 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-05-14T14:57:26.265Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Prevalence and characterization of Vero cytotoxin-producing Escherichia coli isolated from diarrhoeic and healthy sheep and goats

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 April 2003

J. A. ORDEN
Affiliation:
Departamento de Patología Animal I, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad Complutense, 28040 Madrid, Spain
J. A. RUIZ-SANTA-QUITERIA
Affiliation:
Departamento de Patología Animal I, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad Complutense, 28040 Madrid, Spain
M. BLANCO
Affiliation:
Laboratorio de Referencia de E. coli (LREC), Departamento de Microbiología y Parasitología, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, Campus de Lugo, 27002 Lugo, Spain
J. E. BLANCO
Affiliation:
Laboratorio de Referencia de E. coli (LREC), Departamento de Microbiología y Parasitología, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, Campus de Lugo, 27002 Lugo, Spain
A. MORA
Affiliation:
Laboratorio de Referencia de E. coli (LREC), Departamento de Microbiología y Parasitología, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, Campus de Lugo, 27002 Lugo, Spain
D. CID
Affiliation:
Departamento de Patología Animal I, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad Complutense, 28040 Madrid, Spain
E. A. GONZÁLEZ
Affiliation:
Laboratorio de Referencia de E. coli (LREC), Departamento de Microbiología y Parasitología, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, Campus de Lugo, 27002 Lugo, Spain
J. BLANCO
Affiliation:
Laboratorio de Referencia de E. coli (LREC), Departamento de Microbiología y Parasitología, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, Campus de Lugo, 27002 Lugo, Spain
R. DE LA FUENTE
Affiliation:
Departamento de Patología Animal I, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad Complutense, 28040 Madrid, Spain
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

Faecal samples from 146 diarrhoeic lambs and goat kids, and from 511 healthy sheep and goats were screened for the presence of Vero cytotoxin-producing Escherichia coli (VTEC). In healthy sheep and goats, VTEC were isolated in 24·4 and 16·2% of the animals, respectively. Moreover, VTEC were detected in 3·1 and 5·9% of the diarrhoeic lambs and goat kids, respectively. These data suggest that VTEC seems not to be associated with diarrhoea in lambs and goat kids. Only four VTEC strains were eae-positive. The absence of the eae gene in most of these VTEC strains could indicate that these strains are less virulent for humans that the classical eae-positive enterohaemorrhagic E. coli types. However, almost half (42·9%) and 12·2% of VTEC strains isolated from healthy sheep and goats, respectively, belonged to serotypes associated with severe diseases in humans.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
© 2003 Cambridge University Press