Skip to main content
NCBI home page
Journal of Clinical Microbiology logoLink to Journal of Clinical Microbiology
. 1988 Jul;26(7):1292–1297. doi: 10.1128/jcm.26.7.1292-1297.1988

DNA probes for Shiga-like toxins I and II and for toxin-converting bacteriophages.

J W Newland 1, R J Neill 1
PMCID: PMC266595  PMID: 2842369

Abstract

A set of DNA probes has been developed to study the genes for Shiga-like toxins (SLT) and the bacteriophage from which these toxin genes were isolated. Under stringent conditions of hybridization (80 to 90% homology), these probes detect strains containing (i) SLT I-related genes, (ii) SLT II-related genes, (iii) phage sequences from the SLT I-converting phage H19A/933J, and (iv) phage sequences from the SLT II-converting phage 933W. Strain characterization by hybridization with the toxin gene probes was as accurate as methods that used toxin-specific antibody to determine toxin synthesis. Screening of different gram-negative bacteria with the toxin probes revealed that only two species carry sequences related to the SLT genes, Escherichia coli and Shigella dysenteriae 1. These results indicated that the lower levels of toxin activity observed in shigellae other than S. dysenteriae 1 are due to a gene(s) that is genetically distinct from that which encodes Shiga toxin. Analysis of enterotoxigenic, enteroinvasive, enteropathogenic, and enterohemorrhagic E. coli indicated that SLT genes are found primarily in the enterohemorrhagic E. coli strain group. Use of both the toxin and the phage probes has identified a variety of genotypic combinations of phage and toxin sequences which differ from those observed for the original toxin-converting phage isolates, for E. coli O157:H7 strain 933, and for E. coli O26:H11 strain H19.

Full text

PDF
1292

Images in this article

1295Image
on p.1295
1296Image
on p.1296

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Donohue-Rolfe A., Kelley M. A., Bennish M., Keusch G. T. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for shigella toxin. J Clin Microbiol. 1986 Jul;24(1):65–68. doi: 10.1128/jcm.24.1.65-68.1986. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Dretzen G., Bellard M., Sassone-Corsi P., Chambon P. A reliable method for the recovery of DNA fragments from agarose and acrylamide gels. Anal Biochem. 1981 Apr;112(2):295–298. doi: 10.1016/0003-2697(81)90296-7. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Gransden W. R., Damm M. A., Anderson J. D., Carter J. E., Lior H. Further evidence associating hemolytic uremic syndrome with infection by Verotoxin-producing Escherichia coli O157:H7. J Infect Dis. 1986 Sep;154(3):522–524. doi: 10.1093/infdis/154.3.522. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Jackson M. P., Newland J. W., Holmes R. K., O'Brien A. D. Nucleotide sequence analysis of the structural genes for Shiga-like toxin I encoded by bacteriophage 933J from Escherichia coli. Microb Pathog. 1987 Feb;2(2):147–153. doi: 10.1016/0882-4010(87)90106-9. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Karmali M. A., Petric M., Lim C., Fleming P. C., Arbus G. S., Lior H. The association between idiopathic hemolytic uremic syndrome and infection by verotoxin-producing Escherichia coli. J Infect Dis. 1985 May;151(5):775–782. doi: 10.1093/infdis/151.5.775. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Karmali M. A., Petric M., Lim C., Fleming P. C., Arbus G. S., Lior H. The association between idiopathic hemolytic uremic syndrome and infection by verotoxin-producing Escherichia coli. J Infect Dis. 1985 May;151(5):775–782. doi: 10.1093/infdis/151.5.775. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Konowalchuk J., Speirs J. I., Stavric S. Vero response to a cytotoxin of Escherichia coli. Infect Immun. 1977 Dec;18(3):775–779. doi: 10.1128/iai.18.3.775-779.1977. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Levine M. M., Xu J. G., Kaper J. B., Lior H., Prado V., Tall B., Nataro J., Karch H., Wachsmuth K. A DNA probe to identify enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli of O157:H7 and other serotypes that cause hemorrhagic colitis and hemolytic uremic syndrome. J Infect Dis. 1987 Jul;156(1):175–182. doi: 10.1093/infdis/156.1.175. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Maas R. An improved colony hybridization method with significantly increased sensitivity for detection of single genes. Plasmid. 1983 Nov;10(3):296–298. doi: 10.1016/0147-619x(83)90045-8. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Marques L. R., Moore M. A., Wells J. G., Wachsmuth I. K., O'Brien A. D. Production of Shiga-like toxin by Escherichia coli. J Infect Dis. 1986 Aug;154(2):338–341. doi: 10.1093/infdis/154.2.338. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Moseley S. L., Huq I., Alim A. R., So M., Samadpour-Motalebi M., Falkow S. Detection of enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli by DNA colony hybridization. J Infect Dis. 1980 Dec;142(6):892–898. doi: 10.1093/infdis/142.6.892. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Newland J. W., Strockbine N. A., Miller S. F., O'Brien A. D., Holmes R. K. Cloning of Shiga-like toxin structural genes from a toxin converting phage of Escherichia coli. Science. 1985 Oct 11;230(4722):179–181. doi: 10.1126/science.2994228. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Newland J. W., Strockbine N. A., Neill R. J. Cloning of genes for production of Escherichia coli Shiga-like toxin type II. Infect Immun. 1987 Nov;55(11):2675–2680. doi: 10.1128/iai.55.11.2675-2680.1987. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Norrander J., Kempe T., Messing J. Construction of improved M13 vectors using oligodeoxynucleotide-directed mutagenesis. Gene. 1983 Dec;26(1):101–106. doi: 10.1016/0378-1119(83)90040-9. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. O'Brien A. D., Holmes R. K. Shiga and Shiga-like toxins. Microbiol Rev. 1987 Jun;51(2):206–220. doi: 10.1128/mr.51.2.206-220.1987. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. O'Brien A. D., LaVeck G. D., Thompson M. R., Formal S. B. Production of Shigella dysenteriae type 1-like cytotoxin by Escherichia coli. J Infect Dis. 1982 Dec;146(6):763–769. doi: 10.1093/infdis/146.6.763. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. O'Brien A. D., Laveck G. D. Immunochemical and cytotoxic activities of Shigella dysenteriae 1 (shiga) and shiga-like toxins. Infect Immun. 1982 Mar;35(3):1151–1154. doi: 10.1128/iai.35.3.1151-1154.1982. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. O'Brien A. D., Newland J. W., Miller S. F., Holmes R. K., Smith H. W., Formal S. B. Shiga-like toxin-converting phages from Escherichia coli strains that cause hemorrhagic colitis or infantile diarrhea. Science. 1984 Nov 9;226(4675):694–696. doi: 10.1126/science.6387911. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Prado D., Cleary T. G., Pickering L. K., Ericsson C. D., Bartlett A. V., 3rd, DuPont H. L., Johnson P. C. The relation between production of cytotoxin and clinical features in shigellosis. J Infect Dis. 1986 Jul;154(1):149–155. doi: 10.1093/infdis/154.1.149. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Soberon X., Covarrubias L., Bolivar F. Construction and characterization of new cloning vehicles. IV. Deletion derivatives of pBR322 and pBR325. Gene. 1980 May;9(3-4):287–305. doi: 10.1016/0378-1119(90)90328-o. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. Southern E. M. Detection of specific sequences among DNA fragments separated by gel electrophoresis. J Mol Biol. 1975 Nov 5;98(3):503–517. doi: 10.1016/s0022-2836(75)80083-0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  22. Strockbine N. A., Jackson M. P., Sung L. M., Holmes R. K., O'Brien A. D. Cloning and sequencing of the genes for Shiga toxin from Shigella dysenteriae type 1. J Bacteriol. 1988 Mar;170(3):1116–1122. doi: 10.1128/jb.170.3.1116-1122.1988. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  23. Strockbine N. A., Marques L. R., Holmes R. K., O'Brien A. D. Characterization of monoclonal antibodies against Shiga-like toxin from Escherichia coli. Infect Immun. 1985 Dec;50(3):695–700. doi: 10.1128/iai.50.3.695-700.1985. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  24. Strockbine N. A., Marques L. R., Newland J. W., Smith H. W., Holmes R. K., O'Brien A. D. Two toxin-converting phages from Escherichia coli O157:H7 strain 933 encode antigenically distinct toxins with similar biologic activities. Infect Immun. 1986 Jul;53(1):135–140. doi: 10.1128/iai.53.1.135-140.1986. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  25. Willshaw G. A., Smith H. R., Scotland S. M., Field A. M., Rowe B. Heterogeneity of Escherichia coli phages encoding Vero cytotoxins: comparison of cloned sequences determining VT1 and VT2 and development of specific gene probes. J Gen Microbiol. 1987 May;133(5):1309–1317. doi: 10.1099/00221287-133-5-1309. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Journal of Clinical Microbiology are provided here courtesy of American Society for Microbiology (ASM)

RESOURCES