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1.
Previous work in our labs has shown that avian Escherichia coli virulence is correlated with resistance to complement. Also, our studies have revealed that the presence of the increased serum survival gene (iss), known to contribute to the complement resistance and virulence of mammalian E. coli, may predict the virulent nature of an avian E. coli isolate. This relationship warrants further research, but further clarification of the relationship among virulence, complement resistance, and iss sequences requires use of complement susceptibility assays. Such assays, unfortunately, are labor-intensive, expensive, and difficult to perform. In the present study, the results of two complement susceptibility assays for 20 E. coli isolates, 10 incriminated in avian colibacillosis and 10 from the intestinal tracts of apparently healthy birds, were compared in an attempt to determine if flow cytometric analysis was a reasonable alternative to a viable count assay. In addition, the virulence of these isolates for chick embryos was determined, and each isolate was examined for the presence of iss using amplification techniques. The flow cytometric method was found to be repeatable for most isolates, and its results showed moderate agreement with those obtained through viable counts. All intestinal isolates of healthy birds proved avirulent using the embryo lethality assay; however, not all isolates from sick birds were demonstrated to be virulent. Possible explanations of these results include that the methods originally used to isolate these organisms failed to detect the illness-inciting strains or that the virulence of these strains had declined following initial isolation. Additionally, we must consider the possibility that the embryo lethality assay of virulence used here might not be sensitive enough to detect differences between these two groups of isolates. Also, it should be noted that virulence assays, such as the one used here, fail to account for predisposing host or environmental conditions, enabling a less virulent isolate to cause disease under natural conditions. Interestingly, the complement resistance of a strain was significantly associated with its lethality in embryos, and iss-containing isolates were significantly more likely than those lacking iss to be classified as complement-resistant and virulent. Such results, at least for this group of avian E. coli, suggest that there is a compelling but imperfect relationship among complement resistance, virulence, and the presence of iss. These results also suggest that the flow cytometric assay may be a reasonable alternative to the viable count method of determining complement resistance.  相似文献   

2.
Avian colibacillosis is a costly disease for the poultry industry. The mechanisms of virulence employed by the etiologic agent of this disease remain ill defined. However, accumulated evidence suggests that complement resistance and the presence of the increased serum survival gene (iss) in an avian Escherichia coli isolate may be indicative of its ability to cause disease. This association of iss with the E. coli implicated in avian disease may mean that iss and/or, perhaps, the genes associated with it are important contributors to avian E. coli virulence. For this reason, we have begun a search for iss's location in the bacterial genome. Thus far, iss in an avian E coli isolate has been localized to a conjugative R plasmid and estimated to be about 100 kilobase (kb) in size, encoding resistance to tetracycline and ampicillin. Hybridization studies have revealed that this plasmid contains sequences with homology to tsh, a gene associated with virulence of avian E coli; intI 1, a gene encoding the integrase of Class 1 integrons; and certain genes of the aerobactin- and CoIV-encoding operons. Sequences homologous to merA, a gene of the mercury resistance operon, were not identified on this R plasmid. This plasmid, when transferred into an avirulent, recipient strain by conjugation, enhanced the transconjugant's resistance to complement but not its virulence, in spite of the plasmid's possession of several putative virulence genes and traits. Such results may reflect the multifactorial nature of virulence, the degree of the recipient's impairment for virulence, or an inability of the embryo assay used here to detect this plasmid's contribution to virulence. Additionally, this plasmid contains genes encoding antimicrobial resistances, which may provide a selective advantage to virulent E. coli in the production environment. Further study will be needed to determine whether this plasmid is widespread among virulent E. coli and to ascertain the implications that this link between virulence and antimicrobial resistance genes may have for poultry management.  相似文献   

3.
Results with four pathogenic avian Escherichia coli isolates and one avirulent isolate in a complement resistance test, a chicken lethality test, and a chicken embryo lethality test were compared. Results of the complement resistance test with these isolates were highly correlated to results of the chicken lethality test of virulence. The chicken embryo test yielded results that were of a medium positive correlation with the chicken lethality results. The results of the complement resistance and chicken embryo lethality tests were highly correlated.  相似文献   

4.
Three of four virulent avian Escherichia coli isolates transferred a single large molecular-weight R-plasmid to two recipient E. coli strains. Antibiotic resistances transferred included streptomycin (two isolates) and streptomycin-tetracycline-sulfa (one isolate). Production of colicin and siderophores, complement resistance, and embryo lethality present in the virulent isolates were not transferred to recipient organisms. From the results, it appears that the R-plasmids of these virulent avian E. coli are not associated with virulence.  相似文献   

5.
Gibbs PS  Wooley RE 《Avian diseases》2003,47(3):672-680
In previous studies, the embryo lethality assay (ELA) was able to discriminate between virulent and avirulent avian Escherichia coli isolates and to predict percent mortality of the embryos resulting from an isolate based on three traits. The abilities to resist host complement, presence of Colicin V activity, and presence of the increased serum survival gene cluster (iss), were used together in a logistic regression analysis to predict the percentage of embryo deaths resulting from each of 20 avian E. coli isolates used in the ELA. In the present study, the same 20 isolates are used in an intravenous chicken challenge model in an effort to determine whether the ELA could be used to replace chicken challenge studies. Correlations between the mortality and a combination of mortality and morbidity (the survivors at trial termination with lesions suggestive of colibacillosis) and the previous ELA results and with selected isolate traits were performed. Additionally, resulting body weights in surviving chickens were compared between groups. The highest positive correlations were observed between the ELA and the combined mortality/morbidity of the intravenous challenge (r = 0.861, P < 0.0001 for the first ELA challenge, and r = 0.830, P < 0.0001 for the second ELA challenge). The IV challenge combined mortality/morbidity results had the highest correlation coefficients with the presence of iss (r = 0.864, P < 0.0001) and the expression of ColV (r = 0.878, P < 0.0001). The presence of tsh was slightly correlated with mortality (r = 0.465, P = .0389) but demonstrated a higher correlation with the combined mortality and morbidity of the IV challenge (r = 0.558, P = 0.0106). Even though the ELA results in a higher number of nonspecific deaths, the two challenge methods exhibit similar results and a high correlation with each other. Interestingly, some of the isolates showed differences in their ability to cause mortality between the ELA and the IV challenge model. Furthermore, some isolates reflected significant differences in body weights of surviving birds at IV trial termination.  相似文献   

6.
Resistance to Serum Complement,iss, and Virulence of Avian Escherichia coli   总被引:2,自引:0,他引:2  
Control of avian colibacillosis is hampered by lack of easily identifiable markers for virulent Escherichia coli. Resistance to serum complement appears to be a widespread trait of virulent avian E. coli, suggesting that bacterial factors promoting survival in serum may be useful in discriminating between virulent and avirulent isolates. Such distinguishing factors may prove useful in diagnostic protocols or as targets in future colibacillosis control protocols. Interestingly, the factors responsible for resistance to complement differ in the E. coli isolated from mammalian and avian hosts, which may reflect differences in the nature of avian and mammalian colibacillosis. In some cases, genetic determinants for serum complement resistance in avian E. coli are found on aerobactin- or Colicin V-encoding plasmids. One such gene, iss, first described for its role in the serum resistance associated with a ColV plasmid from a human E. coli isolate, occurs much more frequently in isolates from birds with colibacillosis than in faecal isolates from healthy birds. Efforts to identify the genomic location of iss in a single, virulent avian E. coli isolate have revealed that it occurs in association with several purported virulence genes, all linked to a large conjugative R plasmid. At this time, it is not known whether iss merely marks the presence of a larger pathogenicity unit or is itself a contributor to virulence. Nevertheless, the presence of the complement-resistance determinant, iss, may be a marker of virulent avian E. coli exploitable in controlling avian colibacillosis.  相似文献   

7.
iss基因与鸡大肠杆菌毒力相关性的分析   总被引:1,自引:0,他引:1  
对20株鸡源大肠杆菌的致病性进行测定。并对不同致病性鸡大肠杆菌的iss基因进行了扩增。结果表明:鸡E.coli O1、O2、北京1、北京3、贵州1、新大、田大、E10、E11、E27对1日龄雏鸡具有较强的毒力;O78、E5、E21的致病性较弱;而E.coli E1、E4、E7、E8、E9、E14、E18接种雏鸡均无死亡。iss基因在致病性鸡E.coli O1、O2、O78、北京1、北京3、贵州1、新大、田大、E5、E21、E10、E11、E27中的扩增频率为92.31%;在毒力较强的致病性鸡Ecoli O1、O2、北京1、北京3、贵州1、新大、田大、E10、E11、E27中的扩增频率为100%;在无致病性(或低毒力)的鸡Ecoli E1、E4、E7、E8、E9、E14、E18中的扩增频率为14.29%。结果表明:iss基因在致病力强的菌株中的扩增频率明显高于其它菌株,iss基因的存在与鸡大肠杆菌的毒力问有一定的相关性。  相似文献   

8.
采用1日龄雏鸡对1株O1血清型鸡源大肠埃希菌(E.coli)的致病性进行测定,并扩增iss基因.结果表明,鸡E.coli O1对1日龄雏鸡具有较强的毒力.iss基因在致病性鸡E.coli O1中的序列与已知禽大肠埃希菌iss基因序列同源性为100%,与人源大肠埃希菌iss基因核苷酸,序列同源性为90.9%,显示了此基因具有保守性.  相似文献   

9.
Control of colibacillosis is important to the poultry industry. We have found that the presence of a gene for increased serum survival, iss, is strongly correlated with Escherichia coli isolated from birds with colibacillosis. Therefore, the iss gene and its protein product, Iss, are potential targets for detection and control of avian colibacillosis. The iss gene was amplified from a virulent avian E. coli isolate and sequenced. The sequences of the gene and the predicted protein product were compared with those of iss from a human E. coli isolate and lambda bor. The iss gene from the avian E. coli isolate has 96.8% identity with the iss gene from the human E. coli isolate and 89.4% identity with lambda bor. The Iss protein from the avian isolate has 87% identity with Iss from the human isolate and 90% identity with Bor. The low identity between the two Iss proteins is because of a frame-shift in their respective coding sequences. In sum, iss from this avian E. coli isolate is very similar to iss from a human E. coli isolate, but because of a frameshift mutation in the coding sequence of iss from the human E. coli isolate, Iss proteins from avian and human E. coli isolates have only 87% identity. The strong association of iss with E. coli isolated from birds with colibacillosis, suggests that this sequence be studied for its value as a marker or target to be used in colibacillosis control.  相似文献   

10.
The role of complement resistance in the virulence of an avian Escherichia coli isolate was examined with transposon mutagenesis. A suicide plasmid containing a kanamycin-encoding mini-transposon was used to transform a virulent complement-resistant avian E. coli isolate. A less resistant mutant was identified that contained a transposon insertion in a plasmid and in the chromosome. This loss of complement resistance was associated with a drop in virulence in an embryo assay. No other phenotypic changes were detected in the mutant. These results suggest that complement resistance is associated with the virulence of this organism.  相似文献   

11.
In previous studies, the embryo lethality assay (ELA) discriminated between virulent and avirulent avian Escherichia coli isolates, and also proved to be highly correlated with mortality and morbidity results of the intravenous (IV) challenge model. In the current study, the same 20 avian E. coli isolates were used in subcutaneous (subQ) and intratracheal (IT) chicken challenge models in order to determine whether the results from the prior ELA challenges and/or the IV challenge model correlate with these models. The correlation observed between the two previous ELA trials and the combined mortality/morbidity percentages of the subQ challenge model were r = 0.792, P > 0.0001 for the first ELA trial and r = 0.738, P = 0.0002 for the second ELA trial. The IV challenge results were more highly correlated with the subQ challenge results (mortality/morbidity comparison, r = 0.894, P < 0.0001). The IV challenge mortality results were slightly correlated (r = 0.4810, P=0.0319) with the IT challenge results. Several of the isolates differed in their ability to produce mortality and/or morbidity with the different challenge models. The mortality/morbidity results of the IV and subQ challenges and the mortality results of the ELA were all positively correlated with the ability of an E. coli isolate to produce Colicin V (ColV) (r = 0.7131, P = 0.0004). The IT mortality results were slightly correlated with the production of ColV (r = 0.455, P = 0.049). The IT challenge results were only slightly correlated with resulting IV mortality and ColV production. Previous results indicate that the ELA correlates extremely well with the IV challenge model. The current study demonstrates that ELA also correlates well with the subQ challenge model. Overall, the conclusion of this study is that the ELA, IV, and subQ challenge models similarly demonstrate the ability to discriminate between virulent and avirulent avian E. coli isolates.  相似文献   

12.
Twenty avian Escherichia coli isolates from normal and diseased chickens were compared by use of three virulence tests. These tests included the uptake of Congo red dye, an embryo lethality test, and a quantitative microtiter complement resistance test. A direct correlation was seen between the results of the complement resistance test and the embryo lethality test. The results of the Congo red test did not correlate with the two other tests.  相似文献   

13.
Colibacillosis, caused by avian pathogenic Escherichia coli (APEC) is a major problem for the poultry industry resulting in significant losses annually. Previous work in our lab and by others has shown that the increased serum survival gene (iss) is a common trait associated with the virulence of APEC. This gene was first described for its contributions to E. coli serum resistance. However, recently published research has called the contribution of iss to this trait into question. In the present study, the level of serum resistance conferred on an E. coli isolate by iss is examined. Additionally, the contribution of lambda bor gene to E. coli serum resistance is studied, as iss is thought to be derived from bor and bor occurs commonly among E. coli. To better understand the iss and bor contributions to serum resistance, a series of iss and bor mutants was generated. An iss deletion (iss-) mutant showed a significant drop in its resistance to serum. Similarly, a bor mutant showed a drop in serum resistance but not as drastic as that observed with the iss mutant, suggesting that iss contributes more to serum resistance than bor in this E. coli strain. Also, when iss was reintroduced into the iss- mutant the wild-type level of serum resistance was restored, confirming that the deletion of iss was responsible for the change in resistance seen in the mutant.  相似文献   

14.
Colibacillosis caused by Escherichia coli infections account for significant morbidity and mortality in the poultry industry. Yet, despite the importance of colibacillosis, much about the virulence mechanisms employed by avian E. coli remains unknown. In recent years several genes have been linked to avian E. coli virulence, many of which reside on a large transmissible plasmid. In the present study, a multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) protocol to detect the presence of four of these genes is described. Such a protocol may supplement current diagnostic schemes and provide a rapid means of characterizing the E. coli causing disease in poultry. The targets of this procedure included iss, the increased serum survival gene; tsh, the temperature sensitive hemagglutinin gene; cvi, the ColV immunity gene; and iucC, a gene of the aerobactin operon. Organisms, known for their possession or lack of these genes, were used as a source of the template DNA to develop the multiplex PCR protocol. Identity of the amplicons was confirmed by size, DNA:DNA hybridization with specific gene probes, and DNA sequencing. When the multiplex PCR protocol was used to characterize 10 E. coli isolates incriminated in avian colibacillosis and 10 from the feces of apparently healthy birds, nine of the isolates from apparently healthy birds contained no more than one gene, while the 10th contained all four. Also, eight of the isolates incriminated in colibacillosis contained three or more genes, while the remaining two contained two of the target genes. Interestingly, the isolates of sick birds containing only two of the targeted genes killed the least number of embryos,and the isolate of healthy birds that contained all the genes killed the most embryos amongthis group. These genes were not found among the non-E. coli isolates tested, demonstrating the procedure's specificity for E. coli. Overall, these results suggest that this protocol might be useful in characterization and study of avian E. coli.  相似文献   

15.
Public pressure to reduce or eliminate antimicrobials as ingredients of feed for poultry and other agricultural animals is mounting, primarily due to the fear of multidrug-resistant bacteria in clinical infections in both animals and humans. Exploration of the occurrence of antibiotic resistance in the gut flora of wildlife avian flocks that presumptively do not receive antimicrobials will determine the rate of resistance in a na?ve population. Fecal samples collected from a healthy population of the yellow-headed blackbirds (YHB) (Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus) in North Dakota were cultured to determine what genera and species of gram-negative facultative anaerobic bacteria these wild birds carry in their intestinal flora and to evaluate the antimicrobial susceptibility profiles. Isolates of Escherichia coli were further characterized for the presence of putative virulence factors and for pathogenic potential using the chicken embryo lethality assay (ELA). The ELA was performed in chicken embryos with challenges at both 12 days and 16 days of incubation to determine whether the 16-day-old embryos were better able to fight the infection and subsequent disease and also to determine whether the ELA could distinguish between primary and secondary avian Escherichia coli pathogens. After screening 33 isolates from the 21 fecal samples, only two E. coli isolates were identified. The predominant genus and species of bacterium identified was Pantoea agglomerans. Collectively, 12 of the 33 isolates (36%) exhibited no resistance to any antimicrobial tested. However, several multidrug-resistant isolates of varying genera were identified. Among the antimicrobial resistances observed, the most common was to ampicillin (60%), followed by cephalothin (33%). Neither E. coli isolate belonged to serogroups that are notorious for causing major outbreaks of colibacillosis in poultry, and only one E. coli isolate retained resistance to any antibiotics; nevertheless, the ELA results indicate that at least one of these E. coli may be a primary pathogen of chickens. This study demonstrates that antibiotic resistance occurs in the gut flora of natural populations of YHB despite the absence of antibiotic pressure. In addition, these results indicate that YHB will harbor E. coli isolates that are potentially pathogenic in poultry. However, these E. coli isolates are not a significant reservoir for multiple antibiotic resistances nor are they widespread in the population of YHB surveyed in North Dakota.  相似文献   

16.
Multiple isolates of Escherichia coli from clinical cases of colibacillosis and E. coli from the intestinal tracts of normal broilers at slaughter were assayed by the embryo lethality test to determine their virulence. The assay was repeated five times in order to establish reproducibility and determine the statistical parameters of the test. This study showed that the inoculation of approximately 100 colony-forming units in the allantoic cavity of 12-day-old embryos discriminated between virulent and avirulent E. coli isolates. Gross lesions included cranial and skin hemorrhages in addition to encephalomalacia in embryos inoculated with virulent isolates. Abnormalities were observed by microscopic examination of the heart, brain, and liver in embryos inoculated with virulent isolates. Analysis of data indicated that the length of the test should be 4 days. In the virulent group, day 2 postinoculation had the most significant death patterns. Sample size calculations indicated that 11 embryos are sufficient for the assay. On the basis of death rates, isolates considered to be avirulent had an embryo death rate of <10%, moderately or secondary pathogens had a 10%-29% death rate, and virulent isolates had a death rate of >29%. An important aspect of this assay is the accessibility of good-quality fertile embryonated eggs.  相似文献   

17.
Escherichia coli infections are a major problem for the poultry industry in the United States. Yet, the virulence mechanisms operative in avian E. coli are poorly understood. In the present studies, monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) have been generated that may facilitate study of the pathogenesis of avian colibacillosis. These MAbs are directed against the Iss protein because results from our laboratory have shown that the possession of iss DNA sequences is strongly correlated with the E. coli implicated in avian colibacillosis. As part of an overall effort to explore the role of iss/Iss in colibacillosis pathogenesis, Iss protein has been purified, MAbs to Iss have been generated, and the MAbs are being evaluated. B cells from mice immunized with an Iss fusion to glutathione-S-transferase produced antibodies specifically against Iss, and these cells were used to generate the MAbs. These anti-Iss MAbs, when used in western blotting assays, can be used to distinguish iss-positive and -negative E. coli isolates, suggesting that they may be useful as reagents in the detection and study of virulent avian E. coli.  相似文献   

18.
In this study, 294 Escherichia coli isolates from birds with colibacillosis were collected from disease outbreaks throughout the United States and were compared with 75 fecal E. coli isolates of apparently healthy chickens by their possession of several purported virulence genes, resistance to rough-lipopolysaccharide-specific bacteriophages (rLPSr), and elaboration of capsule. Traits were selected for study on the basis of their association with complement resistance. The genes targeted in this study included those encoding colicin V (cvaC) and the outer membrane proteins TraT (traT), OmpA (ompA), and Iss (iss). No significant differences were found between the two groups of isolates in the occurrence of cvaC-, traT-, or ompA-homologous sequences or in rLPSr. Only a few isolates were encapsulated, and the isolates of healthy birds were significantly more likely to be encapsulated than were the isolates of sick birds. However, iss, whether detected through hybridization or amplification, was found in more of the disease-associated isolates than in those of healthy birds. This difference was highly significant. Further, iss sequences were widely distributed among isolates of different serotypes from various avian host species and sites within these hosts. Such results suggest that possession of the iss sequence by an avian E. coli isolate may be a good indicator of that isolate's potential to cause disease. This association warrants further study because iss and the protein it encodes may be useful targets of future colibacillosis control efforts.  相似文献   

19.
Five distinct lipopolysaccharide (LPS) core types, namely R1-R4 and K12 have been identified in Escherichia coli. The aims of this study were to determine, primarily by means of PCR, the distribution of those oligosaccharide core types among avian pathogenic E. coli and their relationship to phylogenetic groups. To identify putative avian pathogenic E. coli, serum resistance and the presence of three virulence genes encoding temperature sensitive haemagglutinin (tsh), increased serum survival (iss) and colicin V (cvaC) were determined. Of the 143 clinical isolates examined 62% possessed the R1 core, 22% were R3, 13% were R4 and 3% were R2. Fifty commensal isolates consisted of 58% with R1 core, 38% with R3 core, 4% with R4 core, and none with R2. None of the isolates were of K12 core type. The distribution of core oligosaccharide types in clinical and commensal isolates were not statistically significant (P=0.51). Three genes, tsh, iss and cvaC were found in E. coli of all four core types. The genes tsh (P<0.001) and iss (P=0.03412) were significantly associated with the R4 core oligosaccharide type. The isolates containing R4 core type LPS were mainly confined to phylogenetic group D. The widespread R1 core type showed less ability to possess virulence genes and 83% were in the phylogenetic group A. Results of this study indicated that E. coli with R1, R2, R3 and R4 were important in causing infections in chickens and further, the E. coli with R4 core type were less common among commensals, possessed more virulence genes and were related to phylogenetic groups pathogenic for poultry.  相似文献   

20.
This study was designed to compare virulence factors of cellulitis-derived Escherichia coli to colisepticemic E. coli in order to clarify whether E. coli associated with cellulitis comprise a unique subset of pathogenic E. coli. Isolates were tested for serotype, capsule, aerobactin production, colicin production, the presence of the iss gene, and serum resistance. Untypable isolates made up the greatest percentage of each group. Serotypes O2 and O78 were the most commonly identified among both groups of isolates. No statistical differences in the distribution of aerobactin or colicin production, capsule, or iss gene were observed between groups. Cluster analysis showed that 90% of the E. coli isolates had greater than 42% livability in serum-resistance tests. No separation of colisepticemic vs. cellulitis E. coli isolates was observed on the basis of SR. Colicin production by E. coli was highly correlated with serum resistance (P = 0.0029). These data suggest that cellulitis E. coli have virulence traits similar to those of colisepticemic E. coli.  相似文献   

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