Abstract
Vibrio cholerae is the causative agent of acute dehydrating diarrhoeal disease cholera. Among 71 V. cholerae non-O1/non-O139 isolates, all yielded negative results for ctxA, ctxB and tcpA genes in PCR assay. Few strains were positive for stn (28.38%), and ompU (31.08%) genes. While all isolates were negative for ace gene, only two were positive for zot gene. All strains expressed toxR and toxT genes. It was also found that all isolates were slime-producer and these were capable of forming moderate to high biofilm. Biofilm formation was controlled positively by the transcriptional regulators VpsR and VpsT and was regulated negatively by HapR, as well as CRP regulatory complex. These isolates were resistant to ampicillin, furazolidone, doxycycline, vancomycin, erythromycin, while these were susceptible to ciprofloxacin, gentamycin, kanamycin, polymixin B, norfloxacin, chloramphenicol, sulphamethoxazole-trimethoprim, tetracycline, nalidixic acid, and streptomycin. Indeed, 69.01% isolates were resistant to multiple antibiotics (MAR: resistance to 3 or more antibiotics). Treatment protocols for cholera patients should be based on local antibiogram data.
Highlights
V. cholerae is the causative agent of an acute dehydrating diarrhoeal disease cholera that is still endemic in many developing countries
Some non-O1/non-O139 V. cholerae strains carry significant virulence genes contained in the CTX prophage which encodes CT (Cholera Toxin) and the TCP (Toxin Coregulated Pilus) pathogenicity island encoding the major colonization factor TCP these are usually carried by epidemic V. cholerae O1 and O139 strains (Faruque et al, 2003)
The aim of our study was to examine the V. cholerae non-O1/non-O139 strains in detail to obtain an understanding of the virulence traits, antibiotic resistance pattern, biofilm formation includes its regulation which might have contributed to the pathogenesis of the isolates
Summary
V. cholerae is the causative agent of an acute dehydrating diarrhoeal disease cholera that is still endemic in many developing countries. Detection and monitoring of toxigenic V. cholerae non-O1/ non-O139 are important during surveillance During their life cycle both in aquatic environment and eukaryotic host V. cholerae face a number of stresses i.e., chlorine water, antibiotics, bactericidal agents etc and to combat these stresses they have evolved an adaptive feature known to be formation of biofilm on biotic and abiotic surfaces. A study undertaken in India has reported these organisms to be resistant to nalidixic acid, ciprofloxacin, co-trimoxazole, chloramphenicol, tetracycline, cephalexin and ampicilin antibiotics (Sabeena et al, 2001; Kingston et al, 2009). The aim of our study was to examine the V. cholerae non-O1/non-O139 strains in detail to obtain an understanding of the virulence traits, antibiotic resistance pattern, biofilm formation includes its regulation which might have contributed to the pathogenesis of the isolates
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