%0 Journal Article %A Orth, Dorothea %A Grif, Katharina %A Dierich, Manfred P. %A Würzner, Reinhard %T Cytolethal distending toxins in Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli: alleles, serotype distribution and biological effects %D 2006 %J Journal of Medical Microbiology, %V 55 %N 11 %P 1487-1492 %@ 1473-5644 %R https://doi.org/10.1099/jmm.0.46666-0 %K CHO, Chinese hamster ovary %K STEC, Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli %K CDT, cytolethal distending toxin %K HUS, haemolytic uraemic syndrome %K NSF, non-sorbitol fermenting %K SF, sorbitol fermenting %K NM, non-motile %I Microbiology Society, %X To assess the prevalence of cytolethal distending toxin (CDT) among Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC), 202 STEC strains were investigated using PCRs targeting various cdt alleles (cdt-I to cdt-V). Seven of the 202 strains contained cdt-III and an additional seven contained cdt-V. All 14 cdt-positive strains produced biologically active CDT, as demonstrated by a progressive distension of cultured Chinese hamster ovary cells. The CDT-positive STEC belonged to eight different serotypes, including sorbitol-fermenting O157 : NM (non-motile). The data demonstrate that CDT is present in some STEC serotypes only. However, more studies are required to evaluate whether CDT presence is associated with severe disease. %U https://www.microbiologyresearch.org/content/journal/jmm/10.1099/jmm.0.46666-0