Lysogenic conversion of atypical enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (aEPEC) from human, murine, and bovine origin with bacteriophage Phi 3538 Delta stx2::cat proves their enterohemorrhagic E-coli (EHEC) progeny

摘要

Bacteriophages play an important role in the evolution of bacterial pathogens. A phage-mediated transfer of stx-genes to atypical enteropathogenic E. coli (aEPEC) which are prevalent in different hosts, would convert them to enterohemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC). We decided to confirm this hypothesis experimentally to provide conclusive evidence that aEPEC isolated from different mammalian hosts are indeed progenitors of typical EHEC which gain the ability to produce Shiga-Toxin by lysogeny with stx-converting bacteriophages, utilizing the model phage Phi 3538 Delta stx2::cat.