O-serotyping of Escherichia coli Strains isolated from Patients With Urinary Tract Infection in Southeast of Iran

Abstract

Background: Uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC) O-serogroups with their phylogenetic background are the most prevalent causes of urinary tract infections (UTIs). Objectives: The association of O types with phylogenetic background was assessed among E. coli isolates collected from patients with UTI. Patients and Methods: In this study, 186 patients with UTI, referred to two hospitals affiliated to Zabol University of Medical Sciences in southeast of Iran, were enrolled during January to July 2013. Phylogenetic groups and serotyping were performed using multiplex-PCR method. Results: A total of 100 E. coli strains were isolated from the urine samples. The most common types of O antigens were O2 (16.43%), O6 (16.43%) and O18 (13.69%). The phylogenetic analysis showed that 63 O-antigen-positive isolates were mainly segregated from the phylogenetic group B2 (56%) and the substantial prevalence (30%) belonged to the phylogenetic group D. Conclusions: This was the first report of E. coli serotyping in patient with UTI from southeast of Iran as well as investigation of their relation with phylogenetic pattern by multiplex-PCR. Further studies from other parts of Iran and on other serotypes are recommended.