A total of 51 clinical strains of
Vibrio mimicus were searched for the presence of virulence-associated genes, like
ctx, zot or
ace genes which locate in “cholera virulence cassette, ” and the
st gene by polymerase chain reaction. Moreover, the pathological potential of each clinical strain was also examined by rabbit ileal loop (RIL). Three strains showed to have the
ctx gene, of which only one strain was
zot gene-positive. Meanwhile, one other strain was
zot+ but
ctx-. All of these four strains were found to have the
ace gene and to belong to serogroup O115. Nine strains showed to carry the
st gene. However, none of these ST-genepositive strains was indicated to contain the genes located in the “cholera virulence cassette.” It is of interest to note that all of the RIL-positive and/or virulence gene-positive strains were restricted to three serogroups, O20, O41 and O115. These results suggest a significant association between O antigens and enterotoxic activities in
V. mimicus clinical strains, and clearly demonstrate multifactorial virulence potentials of this human pathogen.
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