Abstract
Several characters ofEscherichia coli enteropathogenic for farm animals and man are determined by transmissible plasmids. These include the production of K88 and K99 antigens, enterotoxin and haemolysin. The construction of bacteria of a desired plasmid composition provides an elegant method of obtaining information on these characters. Such studies have revealed that the K88 antigen is importantly involved in the ability of enteropathogenicE. coli to proliferate in the small intestine of piglets and that the K99 antigen performs a similar function inE. coli enteropathogenic for calves and lambs. Enterotoxin is mainly responsible for the diarrhoea that then ensues.
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