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Screening for enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC) in paediatric patients with diarrhoea and controls using
1Department of Medical Microbiology and Parasitology, Faculty of Medicine, Addis Ababa University, P.O. Box 9086, Addis Ababa.
Insights
Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC) was screened in Ethiopian children. EPEC strains from patients and controls were identified using pooled antisera, with common serotypes aligning globally.
Area of Science:
- Microbiology
- Pediatrics
- Infectious Diseases
Background:
- Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC) is a significant cause of diarrheal disease in children.
- Understanding the prevalence and serotypes of EPEC is crucial for public health interventions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To screen for EPEC in pediatric patients with diarrhea and control groups in Ethiopia.
- To identify common EPEC serotypes in the study population and compare them with global data.
Main Methods:
- Slide agglutination tests were used to screen 421 Escherichia coli strains isolated from children.
- Pooled antisera (Pools I, II, and III) covering specific serotypes were employed for EPEC identification.
Main Results:
- Enteropathogenic E. coli (EPEC) was detected in 20.8% of diarrheal patients and 7.1% of controls.
- The most common EPEC serotypes identified in Ethiopia were consistent with those found globally.
Conclusions:
- A limited set of pooled antisera effectively screened the majority of EPEC isolates.
- The findings highlight the importance of EPEC surveillance in pediatric populations in Ethiopia.
Abstract:
A total of 421 strains Escherichia coli isolated between 1992 and 1993 from paediatric patients with diarrhoea (n = 345) and controls (n = 76) less than 2 years of age at Ethio-Swedish Children's Hospital, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia were screened for enteropathogenic E. coli (EPEC) on the basis of slide agglutination tests using E. coli polyvalent and pooled antisera I, II and III. The individual pools of antisera comprised the following serotypes: Pool I (O26:B6, O55:B5, O111:B4, O127:B8), Pool II (O86:B7, 0119:B14, 0125:B15, 0126:B16, 0128:B12) and Pool III (025:11L, Oll:74L, 078, 0114, 0124). Of the 345 E. coli isolates from patients 72 (20.8%) and of the 76 E. coli isolates from controls 13 (7.1%) were positive for EPEC. Of the 345 E. coli strains, 21 (6.1%) and of the 76 E. coli strains, 5 (6.6%) were positive for more than one pool of antisera. This study shows that the most common serotypes among EPEC from Ethiopia correspond to the most frequent serotypes from other parts of the world. A limited number of pooled antisera were sufficient to screen the majority of the EPEC isolates.