1887

Abstract

Summary: Most invasive strains of from man and domestic animals were lethal for chickens and mice. The lethal characteristic was not, in general, transferred when invasive strains were grown in mixed culture with non-pathogenic strains of , although two transmissible plasmids coding for pathogenic properties were discovered.

One plasmid, designated Vir, was found in an strain causing bacteraemia in a lamb. It transferred at high rate to several strains of , including a A 12 strain, to and Culture filtrates and, especially, bacterial ultrasonicates of Vir strains were toxic for chickens, mice and rabbits. The toxin was heat-sensitive, acid-sensitive and non-diffusible. Organisms producing it were agglutinated by specific Virantisera; their toxic activity was not neutralized. The transfer factor of the Vir plasmid was fi and could transfer antibiotic-resistance determinants in addition to the Vir determinant.

The other plasmid was first discovered in an strain 120, isolated from an outbreak of bacteraemia in chickens. Organisms of 12 and of other strains acquiring this plasmid during mixed culture with 120 were increased in lethality for chickens and mice; this was associated not with toxic activity but with greater ability to survive in blood and peritoneal fluids. Strain 120 possessed transmissible ColV and Collb plasmids; increased lethality was closely associated with the ColV plasmid. When the ColV plasmids of another six wild strains of of varied origin were transferred to organisms of 12, the lethality increase was similar to that for ColV transfer from 120.No lethality change accompanied transfer of other Col plasmids. It was concluded that colicine V itself might be responsible for the increased lethality.

Strains of associated with bacteraemia in man and animals commonly produced colicine V.

Loading

Article metrics loading...

/content/journal/micro/10.1099/00221287-83-1-95
1974-07-01
2024-03-28
Loading full text...

Full text loading...

/deliver/fulltext/micro/83/1/mic-83-1-95.html?itemId=/content/journal/micro/10.1099/00221287-83-1-95&mimeType=html&fmt=ahah

References

  1. Anderson E. S. 1965; A rapid screening test for transfer factors in drug-sensitive Enterobacteriaceae. Nature; London: 2081016–1017
    [Google Scholar]
  2. Braude A. I., Siemienski J. S. 1964; Plasma bactericidal power of mice injected with non-toxic colicine V. Federation Proceedings 23:565
    [Google Scholar]
  3. Braude A. I., Siemienski J. S. 1965; The influence of bacteriocins on resistance to infection by Gramnegative bacteria. I. The effect of colicin on the bactericidal power of the blood. Journal of Clinical Investigation 44:849–859
    [Google Scholar]
  4. Davis J. E., Strauss J. H.Jun Sinsheimer R. L. 1961; Bacteriophage MS2: another RNA phage. Science; New York: 1341427
    [Google Scholar]
  5. Heatley N. G., Florey H. W. 1946; An antibiotic from Bacterium coli. British Journal of Experimental Pathology 27:378–390
    [Google Scholar]
  6. Hutton J. J., Goebel W. F. 1961; Colicine V. Proceedings of the National Academy of Science of the United States of America 47:1498–1500
    [Google Scholar]
  7. Lewis M. J. 1968; Transferable drug resistance and other transferable agents in strains of Escherichia colifrom two human populations. Lancet i:1389–1393
    [Google Scholar]
  8. Meynell G. G. 1968; Bacterial sex factors. In Annual Report of the Lister Institute for Preventive Medicine
    [Google Scholar]
  9. Miles A. A., Misra S. S. 1938; The estimation of the bactericidal power of the blood. Journal of Hygiene 38:732–749
    [Google Scholar]
  10. Ørskov I., Ørskov F. 1966; Episome-carried surface antigen K88 of Escherichia coli. I. Transmission of the determinant of the K88 antigen and influence on the transfer of chromosomal markers. Journal of Bacteriology 91:69–75
    [Google Scholar]
  11. Skerman F. J., Formal S. B., Falkow S. 1972; Plasmid-associated enterotoxin production in a strain of Escherichia coli isolated from humans. Infection and Immunity 5:622–624
    [Google Scholar]
  12. Smith H.Williams, Halls S. 1967; The transmissible nature of the genetic factor in Escherichia colithat controls haemolysin production. Journal of General Microbiology 47:153–161
    [Google Scholar]
  13. Smith H.Williams, Halls S. 1968; The transmissible nature of the genetic factor in Escherichia colithat controls enterotoxin production. Journal of General Microbiology 52:319–334
    [Google Scholar]
  14. Smith H.Williams, Linggodd M. A. 1970; Transfer factors in Escherichia coli with particular regard to their incidence in enteropathogenic strains. Journal of General Microbiology 62:287–299
    [Google Scholar]
  15. Smith H.Williams, Linggodd M. A. 1971; The transmissible nature of enterotoxin production in a human enteropathogenic strain of Escherichia coli. Journal of Medical Microbiology 4:301–305
    [Google Scholar]
  16. Smith H.Williams, Linggodd M. A. 1972; Further observations on Escherichia coli enterotoxin with particular regard to those produced by atypical piglet strains and by calf and lamb strains: the transmissible nature of these enterotoxins and of a K antigen possessed by calf and lamb strains. Journal of Medical Microbiology 5:243–249
    [Google Scholar]
http://instance.metastore.ingenta.com/content/journal/micro/10.1099/00221287-83-1-95
Loading
/content/journal/micro/10.1099/00221287-83-1-95
Loading

Data & Media loading...

This is a required field
Please enter a valid email address
Approval was a Success
Invalid data
An Error Occurred
Approval was partially successful, following selected items could not be processed due to error