This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowReprints and Permissions
Right arrow Copyright Information
Right arrow Books from ASM Press
Right arrow MicrobeWorld
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Bopp, D. J.
Right arrow Articles by Limberger, R. J.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Bopp, D. J.
Right arrow Articles by Limberger, R. J.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Journal of Clinical Microbiology, January 2003, p. 174-180, Vol. 41, No. 1
0095-1137/03/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/JCM.41.1.174-180.2003
Copyright © 2003, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Detection, Isolation, and Molecular Subtyping of Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Campylobacter jejuni Associated with a Large Waterborne Outbreak

Dianna J. Bopp,1 Brian D. Sauders,1 Alfred L. Waring,1 Joel Ackelsberg,2,3 Nellie Dumas,1 Ellen Braun-Howland,1 David Dziewulski,4 Barbara J. Wallace,2 Molly Kelly,1 Tanya Halse,1 Kimberlee Aruda Musser,1 Perry F. Smith,2 Dale L. Morse,2 and Ronald J. Limberger1*

Wadsworth Center,1 Center for Community Health,2 Center for Environmental Health, New York State Department of Health, Albany, New York,4 Epidemiology Program Office, Epidemic Intelligence Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia3

Received 14 June 2002/ Returned for modification 8 August 2002/ Accepted 27 September 2002

The largest reported outbreak of waterborne Escherichia coli O157:H7 in the United States occurred in upstate New York following a county fair in August 1999. Culture methods were used to isolate E. coli O157:H7 from specimens from 128 of 775 patients with suspected infections. Campylobacter jejuni was also isolated from stools of 44 persons who developed diarrheal illness after attending this fair. There was one case of a confirmed coinfection with E. coli O157:H7 and C. jejuni. Molecular detection of stx1 and stx2 Shiga toxin genes, immunomagnetic separation (IMS), and selective culture enrichment were utilized to detect and isolate E. coli O157:H7 from an unchlorinated well and its distribution points, a dry well, and a nearby septic tank. PCR for stx1 and stx2 was shown to provide a useful screen for toxin-producing E. coli O157:H7, and IMS subculture improved recovery. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) was used to compare patient and environmental E. coli O157:H7 isolates. Among patient isolates, 117 of 128 (91.5%) were type 1 or 1a (three or fewer bands different). Among the water distribution system isolates, 13 of 19 (68%) were type 1 or 1a. Additionally, PFGE of C. jejuni isolates revealed that 29 of 35 (83%) had indistinguishable PFGE patterns. The PFGE results implicated the water distribution system as the main source of the E. coli O157:H7 outbreak. This investigation demonstrates the potential for outbreaks involving more than one pathogen and the importance of analyzing isolates from multiple patients and environmental samples to develop a better understanding of bacterial transmission during an outbreak.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Wadsworth Center, David Axelrod Institute for Public Health, New York State Department of Health, P.O. Box 22002, 120 New Scotland Ave., Albany, NY 12201-2002. Phone: (518) 474-4177. Fax: (518) 486-7971. E-mail: Ron.Limberger{at}wadsworth.org. {dagger} Present address: Department of Food Science, Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y.

Journal of Clinical Microbiology, January 2003, p. 174-180, Vol. 41, No. 1
0095-1137/03/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/JCM.41.1.174-180.2003
Copyright © 2003, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Mull, B., Hill, V. R. (2009). Recovery and Detection of Escherichia coli O157:H7 in Surface Water, Using Ultrafiltration and Real-Time PCR. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 75: 3593-3597 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Forbes, K. J., Gormley, F. J., Dallas, J. F., Labovitiadi, O., MacRae, M., Owen, R. J., Richardson, J., Strachan, N. J. C., Cowden, J. M., Ogden, I. D., McGuigan, C. C. (2009). Campylobacter Immunity and Coinfection following a Large Outbreak in a Farming Community. J. Clin. Microbiol. 47: 111-116 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Laing, C., Pegg, C., Yawney, D., Ziebell, K., Steele, M., Johnson, R., Thomas, J. E., Taboada, E. N., Zhang, Y., Gannon, V. P. J. (2008). Rapid Determination of Escherichia coli O157:H7 Lineage Types and Molecular Subtypes by Using Comparative Genomic Fingerprinting. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 74: 6606-6615 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Keen, J. E., Durso, L. M., Meehan, T. P. (2007). Isolation of Salmonella enterica and Shiga-Toxigenic Escherichia coli O157 from Feces of Animals in Public Contact Areas of United States Zoological Parks. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 73: 362-365 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Vaz, T. M. I., Irino, K., Nishimura, L. S., Cergole-Novella, M. C., Guth, B. E. C. (2006). Genetic Heterogeneity of Shiga Toxin-Producing Escherichia coli Strains Isolated in Sao Paulo, Brazil, from 1976 through 2003, as Revealed by Pulsed-Field Gel Electrophoresis.. J. Clin. Microbiol. 44: 798-804 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Miller, W. G., On, S. L. W., Wang, G., Fontanoz, S., Lastovica, A. J., Mandrell, R. E. (2005). Extended Multilocus Sequence Typing System for Campylobacter coli, C. lari, C. upsaliensis, and C. helveticus. J. Clin. Microbiol. 43: 2315-2329 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • DeCory, T. R., Durst, R. A., Zimmerman, S. J., Garringer, L. A., Paluca, G., DeCory, H. H., Montagna, R. A. (2005). Development of an Immunomagnetic Bead-Immunoliposome Fluorescence Assay for Rapid Detection of Escherichia coli O157:H7 in Aqueous Samples and Comparison of the Assay with a Standard Microbiological Method. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 71: 1856-1864 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Fratamico, P. M., Bagi, L. K., Bush, E. J., Solow, B. T. (2004). Prevalence and Characterization of Shiga Toxin-Producing Escherichia coli in Swine Feces Recovered in the National Animal Health Monitoring System's Swine 2000 Study. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 70: 7173-7178 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Price, S. B., Wright, J. C., DeGraves, F. J., Castanie-Cornet, M.-P., Foster, J. W. (2004). Acid Resistance Systems Required for Survival of Escherichia coli O157:H7 in the Bovine Gastrointestinal Tract and in Apple Cider Are Different. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 70: 4792-4799 [Abstract] [Full Text]  


Copyright © 2009 by the American Society for Microbiology.   For an alternate route to Journals.ASM.org, visit: http://intl-journals.asm.org | More Info»