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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania » Eastern Regional Research Center » Characterization and Interventions for Foodborne Pathogens » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #355473
Research Project: Molecular Characterization of Foodborne Pathogen Responses to Stress

Location: Characterization and Interventions for Foodborne Pathogens

Title: Draft genome sequences of seven strains of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli O111 with variation in their sensitivity to novobiocin

Author
item ROTUNDO, LUCA - Collaborator
item BOCCIA, FEDERICA - The University Of Naples Federico Ii
item Fratamico, Pina
item XU, AIXIA - Collaborator
item Sommers, Christopher
item Liu, Yanhong
item Bono, James - Jim
item PEPE, TIZIANA - The University Of Naples Federico Ii

Submitted to: Microbiology Resource Announcements
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 8/10/2018
Publication Date: 9/13/2018
Citation: Rotundo, L., Boccia, F., Fratamico, P.M., Xu, A., Sommers, C.H., Liu, Y., Bono, J.L., Pepe, T. 2018. Draft genome sequences of seven strains of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli O111 with variation in their sensitivity to novobiocin. Microbiology Resource Announcements. 7(10). https://doi.org/10.1128/MRA.01030-18.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1128/MRA.01030-18

Interpretive Summary: Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) are responsible for serious outbreaks and sporadic cases of food-borne illness worldwide. STEC strains belonging to serogroup O111 are considered very harmful pathogens associated with food products. Methods for detection of STEC in food include the use of an antimicrobial called novobiocin as a selective agent to enrichment media and selective agars to prevent the growth of background bacteria and assist in detecting the target STEC. It was discovered that novobiocin inhibits the growth of some STEC, particularly STEC O111, and this can yield false-negative detection results. Thus, the genome sequence (an organism’s compelete set of DNA) of seven STEC O111 strains that varied in their sensitivity to novobiocin was determined. These sequences are being compared to determine the gene(s) or alterations in the genetic material that are involved in novobiocin sensitivity, and the genome sequences were deposited in the publicly available GenBank genetic sequence database. This information is important for understanding the characteristics of this pathogen at the molecular level for development of enrichment media and selective agars that will allow improved detection of STEC O111 and prevent the release of contaminated food products to the consumer.

Technical Abstract: Inclusion of novobiocin as a selective agent to enrichment media and selective agars inhibits the growth of some Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC), particularly, non-O157 STEC, which can yield false-negative detection results. Here we report the draft genomic sequences of seven STEC O111 isolates with different sensitivity to novobiocin.