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© 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.

Abstract

While primarily Gram-positive bacteria cause bacterial eye infections, several Gram-negative species also pose eye health risks. Currently, few studies have tried to understand the pathogenic mechanisms involved in E. coli eye infections. Therefore, this study aimed to establish the pathogenic potential of E. coli strains isolated from eye infections. Twenty-two strains isolated between 2005 and 2019 from patients with keratitis or conjunctivitis were included and submitted to traditional polymerase chain reactions (PCR) to define their virulence profile, phylogeny, clonal relationship, and sequence type (ST). Phenotypic assays were employed to determine hemolytic activity, antimicrobial susceptibility, and adhesion to human primary corneal epithelial cells (PCS-700-010). The phylogenetic results indicated that groups B2 and ST131 were the most frequent. Twenty-five virulence genes were found among our strains, with ecp, sitA, fimA, and fyuA being the most prevalent. Two strains presented a hemolytic phenotype, and resistance to ciprofloxacin and ertapenem was found in six strains and one strain, respectively. Regarding adherence, all but one strains adhered in vitro to corneal cells. Our results indicate significant genetic and virulence variation among ocular strains and point to an ocular pathogenic potential related to multiple virulence mechanisms.

Details

Title
Evaluation of the Pathogenic Potential of Escherichia coli Strains Isolated from Eye Infections
Author
Soares Nunes, Pedro Henrique 1 ; Valiatti, Tiago Barcelos 2 ; Ana Carolina de Mello Santos 3   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Júllia Assis da Silva Nascimento 3   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Santos-Neto, José Francisco 3   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Rocchetti, Talita Trevizani 4 ; Zorat Yu, Maria Cecilia 4 ; Hofling-Lima, Ana Luisa 4 ; Tânia Aparecida Tardelli Gomes 3   VIAFID ORCID Logo 

 Laboratório Experimental de Patogenicidade de Enterobactérias (LEPE), Disciplina de Microbiologia, Departamento de Microbiologia, Imunologia e Parasitologia (DMIP), Escola Paulista de Medicina (EPM), Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP), Sao Paulo 04023-062, Brazil; [email protected] (P.H.S.N.); [email protected] (T.B.V.); [email protected] (A.C.d.M.S.); [email protected] (J.A.d.S.N.); [email protected] (J.F.S.-N.); Laboratório de Oftalmologia (LOFT), Departamento de Oftalmologia e Ciências Visuais, Escola Paulista de Medicina (EPM), Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP), Sao Paulo 04023-062, Brazil; [email protected] (T.T.R.); [email protected] (M.C.Z.Y.); [email protected] (A.L.H.-L.) 
 Laboratório Experimental de Patogenicidade de Enterobactérias (LEPE), Disciplina de Microbiologia, Departamento de Microbiologia, Imunologia e Parasitologia (DMIP), Escola Paulista de Medicina (EPM), Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP), Sao Paulo 04023-062, Brazil; [email protected] (P.H.S.N.); [email protected] (T.B.V.); [email protected] (A.C.d.M.S.); [email protected] (J.A.d.S.N.); [email protected] (J.F.S.-N.); Laboratório Alerta, Disciplina de Infectologia, Departamento de Medicina, Escola Paulista de Medicina (EPM), Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP), Sao Paulo 04039-032, Brazil 
 Laboratório Experimental de Patogenicidade de Enterobactérias (LEPE), Disciplina de Microbiologia, Departamento de Microbiologia, Imunologia e Parasitologia (DMIP), Escola Paulista de Medicina (EPM), Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP), Sao Paulo 04023-062, Brazil; [email protected] (P.H.S.N.); [email protected] (T.B.V.); [email protected] (A.C.d.M.S.); [email protected] (J.A.d.S.N.); [email protected] (J.F.S.-N.) 
 Laboratório de Oftalmologia (LOFT), Departamento de Oftalmologia e Ciências Visuais, Escola Paulista de Medicina (EPM), Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP), Sao Paulo 04023-062, Brazil; [email protected] (T.T.R.); [email protected] (M.C.Z.Y.); [email protected] (A.L.H.-L.) 
First page
1084
Publication year
2022
Publication date
2022
Publisher
MDPI AG
e-ISSN
20762607
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
2679760678
Copyright
© 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.