Genomic Characterization of Enteroaggregative Escherichia coli From Children in Mali
Open Access
- 19 December 2011
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Oxford University Press (OUP) in The Journal of Infectious Diseases
- Vol. 205 (3), 431-444
- https://doi.org/10.1093/infdis/jir757
Abstract
Background. Enteroaggregative Escherichia coli (EAEC) is a cause of epidemic and sporadic diarrhea, yet its role as an enteric pathogen is not fully understood. Methods. We characterized 121 EAEC strains isolated in 2008 as part of a case-control study of moderate to severe acute diarrhea among children 0–59 months of age in Bamako, Mali. We applied multiplex polymerase chain reaction and comparative genome hybridization to identify potential virulence factors among the EAEC strains, coupled with classification and regression tree modeling to reveal combinations of factors most strongly associated with illness. Results. The gene encoding the autotransporter protease SepA, originally described in Shigella species, was most strongly associated with diarrhea among the EAEC strains tested (odds ratio, 5.6 [95% confidence interval, 1.92–16.17]; P = .0006). In addition, we identified 3 gene combinations correlated with diarrhea: (1) a clonal group positive for sepA and a putative hemolysin; (2) a group harboring the EAST-1 enterotoxin and the flagellar type H33 but no other previously identified EAEC virulence factor; and (3) a group carrying several of the typical EAEC virulence genes. Conclusion. Our data suggest that only a subset of EAEC strains are pathogenic in Mali and suggest that sepA may serve as a valuable marker for the most virulent isolates.Keywords
This publication has 62 references indexed in Scilit:
- Origins of theE. coliStrain Causing an Outbreak of Hemolytic–Uremic Syndrome in GermanyThe New England Journal of Medicine, 2011
- An FDA bioinformatics tool for microbial genomics research on molecular characterization of bacterial foodborne pathogens using microarraysBMC Bioinformatics, 2010
- Global, regional, and national causes of child mortality in 2008: a systematic analysisThe Lancet, 2010
- UropathogenicEscherichia coliSuppresses the Host Inflammatory Response via Pathogenicity Island GenessisAandsisBInfection and Immunity, 2009
- The Pic Protease of Enteroaggregative Escherichia coli Promotes Intestinal Colonization and Growth in the Presence of MucinInfection and Immunity, 2009
- Characterisation of Early Mucosal and Neuronal Lesions Following Shigella flexneri Infection in Human ColonPLOS ONE, 2009
- New Adhesin of Enteroaggregative Escherichia coli Related to the Afa/Dr/AAF FamilyInfection and Immunity, 2008
- Autotransporter-Encoding Sequences Are Phylogenetically Distributed amongEscherichia coliClinical Isolates and Reference StrainsApplied and Environmental Microbiology, 2007
- Association of Putative Enteroaggregative Escherichia coli Virulence Genes and Biofilm Production in Isolates from Travelers to Developing CountriesJournal of Clinical Microbiology, 2007
- An extensive repertoire of type III secretion effectors in Escherichia coli O157 and the role of lambdoid phages in their disseminationProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2006