{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,26]],"date-time":"2026-03-26T16:03:01Z","timestamp":1774540981529,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":89,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"4","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,26]],"date-time":"2026-03-26T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1774483200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Pathogens"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Phage-encoded Shiga toxin (Stx) released by Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) can kill multiple eukaryotic bacterial predators, including Acanthamoeba castellanii, Tetrahymena thermophila and Caenorhabditis elegans. However, the impact of Stx type, Stx amount, and the serogroup of the E. coli on the effectiveness of this exotoxin are poorly understood. These factors impact the severity of Stx-mediated disease in humans and therefore, by studying their role in modulating predator\u2013prey interactions, we may gain insight into how these virulence factors evolved to contribute to human pathogenicity. Herein, we investigated the effects of these factors on predator killing by measuring the efficiency with which five different hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS)-causing STEC strains consume and\/or kill A. castellanii and C. elegans. These strains express various combinations of Stx types and amounts and O-antigens. We found that variations in Stx types and amounts significantly affect the ability of a given bacterial strain to kill predator A. castellanii and C. elegans, with higher Stx1 titers (HUSEC 31 vs. 19) and the presence of Stx2 alone (HUSEC 20) correlating with significantly greater predator killing. These attributes also affect STEC pathogenicity in humans, suggesting that ecological selective pressures for anti-predator defense inadvertently drive the evolution of strains with higher virulence potential in humans.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/pathogens15040353","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,26]],"date-time":"2026-03-26T15:10:24Z","timestamp":1774537824000},"page":"353","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Factors Governing the Cross-Species Virulence of Shiga Toxin-Producing Escherichia coli"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"15","author":[{"given":"Paul","family":"Hart","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biological Sciences, University at Buffalo, 109 Cooke Hall, Buffalo, NY 14260, USA"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Alexander","family":"Bowitch","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biological Sciences, University at Buffalo, 109 Cooke Hall, Buffalo, NY 14260, USA"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0649-5185","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Alexander","family":"Mellmann","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"National Consulting Laboratory for Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome (HUS), Institute of Hygiene, University Hospital M\u00fcnster, 48149 M\u00fcnster, Germany"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0001-3303-5336","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Denise M.","family":"Ferkey","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biological Sciences, University at Buffalo, 109 Cooke Hall, Buffalo, NY 14260, USA"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-6280-0837","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Gerald B.","family":"Koudelka","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biological Sciences, University at Buffalo, 109 Cooke Hall, Buffalo, NY 14260, USA"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,26]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"447","DOI":"10.1089\/fpd.2013.1704","article-title":"Global Incidence of Human Shiga Toxin\u2013Producing Escherichia coli Infections and Deaths: A Systematic Review and Knowledge Synthesis","volume":"11","author":"Majowicz","year":"2014","journal-title":"Foodborne Pathog. 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