Cholera-like enterotoxin in certain Campylobacter jejuni strains: some observations

Fourteen human isolates of Campylobacter jejuni (13 pathogenic + 1 non-pathogenic) and two animal isolates were studied for the production of a toxin immunologically related to the heat-labile enterotoxin (LT) produced by a strain of Escherichia coli of human (H) origin using an immuno-dot-blot assay with immunoaffinity purified antibodies against H-LT. Polymyxin-B sulfate extracts of 72 hrs growth in eight of the 15 pathogenic strains were positive in immuno-dot-blot. Six of these positive extracts also exhibited delayed permeability factor activity in rabbit skin.