{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,6]],"date-time":"2026-10-06T16:19:25Z","timestamp":1791303565718,"version":"4.1.0"},"reference-count":44,"publisher":"Microbiology Society","issue":"3","content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":[],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2010,3,1]]},"abstract":"<jats:p>The aim of this study was to investigate the role and clinical course of verotoxigenic <jats:italic>Escherichia coli<\/jats:italic> (VTEC) infections in children with acute diarrhoea from Argentina, the country with the highest worldwide incidence of haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS). To accomplish this objective, 437 samples from children up to 6 years old with acute diarrhoea were collected and processed. More than 60\u200a% of the children studied presented watery or mucous diarrhoea without blood, and in 25.2\u200a% of the cases the samples contained blood. In a first screening, a multiplex PCR was performed to detect the presence of the <jats:italic>vt<\/jats:italic>\n                  <jats:sub>1<\/jats:sub>, <jats:italic>vt<\/jats:italic>\n                  <jats:sub>2<\/jats:sub>, <jats:italic>eae<\/jats:italic>, <jats:italic>ehxA<\/jats:italic> and <jats:italic>saa<\/jats:italic> virulence genes. The strains were then isolated and analysed to characterize their serotypes, virulence genes, antibiotic susceptibility profiles and verotoxin (VT) production. Forty-four of the 437 samples (10.1\u200a%) were positive for VTEC virulence genes. VTEC-infected patients presented different types of diarrhoea (27.3\u200a% belonged to the non-bloody type). Several serotypes and virulence genotypes were found. Isolates belonged to the serotypes O157\u200a:\u200aH7, O145\u200a:\u200aH<jats:sup>\u2212<\/jats:sup>, O26\u200a:\u200aH11, O121\u200a:\u200aH19, O111\u200a:\u200aH2 and O118\u200a:\u200aH2. HUS developed in 16 (36.4\u200a%) patients positive for VTEC virulence genes. All of the VTEC isolates produced a cytopathic effect on Vero cell monolayers, confirming the ability to express VT. Despite most strains being sensitive to all of the antimicrobials studied, a positive association between clinical progression to HUS and antibiotic therapy was observed for the total number of patients studied, as well as for the VTEC<jats:sup>+<\/jats:sup> group. In conclusion, the data obtained in this study increase our knowledge of the role and clinical course of VTEC infection in childhood acute diarrhoea beyond bloody diarrhoea, and might be considered for the prevention, diagnosis and management of this disease. It is possible that the optimal approach for VTEC diagnosis could be using multiplex PCR to search for the presence of the <jats:italic>vt<\/jats:italic>\n                  <jats:sub>1<\/jats:sub>, <jats:italic>vt<\/jats:italic>\n                  <jats:sub>2<\/jats:sub>, <jats:italic>eae<\/jats:italic> and <jats:italic>ehxA<\/jats:italic> genes.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1099\/jmm.0.015560-0","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2009,11,3]],"date-time":"2009-11-03T22:57:02Z","timestamp":1257289022000},"page":"345-352","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":62,"title":["Role and clinical course of verotoxigenic Escherichia coli infections in childhood acute diarrhoea in Argentina"],"prefix":"10.1099","volume":"59","author":[{"given":"Mariana Alejandra","family":"Rivero","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"\u00c1rea Epidemiolog\u00eda y Estad\u00edstica, Departamento de Sanidad Animal y Medicina Preventiva, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires, Pinto 399 (7000), Tandil, Argentina"},{"name":"\u00c1rea Inmunoqu\u00edmica y Biotecnolog\u00eda, Departamento de Sanidad Animal y Medicina Preventiva, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires, Pinto 399 (7000), Tandil, Argentina"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Juan Antonio","family":"Passucci","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"\u00c1rea Epidemiolog\u00eda y Estad\u00edstica, Departamento de Sanidad Animal y Medicina Preventiva, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires, Pinto 399 (7000), Tandil, Argentina"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Edgardo Mario","family":"Rodriguez","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"\u00c1rea Epidemiolog\u00eda y Estad\u00edstica, Departamento de Sanidad Animal y Medicina Preventiva, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires, Pinto 399 (7000), Tandil, Argentina"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Alberto Ernesto","family":"Parma","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"\u00c1rea Inmunoqu\u00edmica y Biotecnolog\u00eda, Departamento de Sanidad Animal y Medicina Preventiva, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires, Pinto 399 (7000), Tandil, Argentina"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"345","reference":[{"key":"R1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1063","DOI":"10.1086\/319269","article-title":"The United States National Prospective Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome Study: microbiologic, serologic, clinical, and epidemiologic findings","volume":"183","author":"Banatvala","year":"2001","journal-title":"J Infect Dis"},{"key":"R2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"493","DOI":"10.1093\/ajcp\/45.4_ts.493","article-title":"Antibiotic susceptibility testing by a standardized single disk method","volume":"45","author":"Bauer","year":"1966","journal-title":"Am J Clin Pathol"},{"key":"R3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"635","DOI":"10.3201\/eid0404.980415","article-title":"Human infections with Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli other than serogroup O157 in Germany","volume":"4","author":"Beutin","year":"1998","journal-title":"Emerg Infect Dis"},{"key":"R4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"155","DOI":"10.1111\/j.1574-6968.1992.tb05409.x","article-title":"Serogroups of Escherichia coli strains producing cytotoxic necrotizing factors CNF1 and CNF2","volume":"75","author":"Blanco","year":"1992","journal-title":"FEMS Microbiol Lett"},{"key":"R5","first-page":"385","article-title":"Detection of enterohaemorrhagic Escherichia coli O157\u200a:\u200aH7 in ground beef using immunomagnetic separation","volume":"12","author":"Blanco","year":"1996","journal-title":"Microbiologia"},{"key":"R6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"309","DOI":"10.1016\/S0378-1135(96)01292-8","article-title":"Distribution and characterization of fecal verotoxin-producing Escherichia coli (VTEC) isolated from healthy cattle. 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