Special properties associated with virulence of urinary Escherichia coli

Escherichia coli (E. coli) isolated from 53 urine and 26 stool samples of patients with urinary tract infection (UTI) and 50 stool samples of normal individuals were studied to see their hemolytic, hemagglutinating and 'O' antigenic properties which might be related to virulence of the organism. Significantly higher number of E. coli isolated from urine of UTI patients were found to possess hemolytic, hemagglutinating properties and more frequently belonged to certain "O" antigenic groups either singly or in combination as compared to those isolated from stool of both UTI patients and normal individuals. Hemagglutinating property appeared to be most frequently associated with UTI.