Abstract

CARDOZO, Lourdes; MARTINEZ, Rosa Elena; FENG, Peter  and  VILLALOBOS, Luz Bettina. First isolation of non-O157 shiga toxin producing Escherichia coli in bovine and porcine meats in Venezuela. Rev. Soc. Ven. Microbiol. [online]. 2012, vol.32, n.2, pp.107-111. ISSN 1315-2556.

Shiga toxin producing Escherichia coli (STEC) is a food-transmitted pathogen. Serotype O157:H7 is considered the most clinically important, but 50% of STEC infections correspond to non-O157 serotypes. In Venezuela, presence of non-O157 STEC strains in meat products has not been reported, which was the reason for this study. Seventy ground meat samples were analyzed (35 bovine and 35 porcine). E. coli isolation was done in MacConkey sorbitol agar, supplemented with cefixim, and the biochemical identification was done according to FDA guidelines. DNA extraction and PCR assays were used for the identification of STEC O157:H7 and not O157 strains. Of the 70 samples analyzed, 50 (71.4%) were positive for E. coli isolation, and 47 sorbitol positive and 3 sorbitol negative strains were identified. PCR showed absence of STEC O157:H7 and presence of non-O157 STEC Shiga toxin Stx1 and Stx2 producers in 4.3% of the samples analyzed. This is the first time that the circulation of non-O157 STEC strains in meat products is demonstrated in this country, which suggests that prevention strategies associated to this pathogen should be established.

Keywords : non-O157 STEC; PCR; bovine meat; porcine meat; Venezuela.

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