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Applied and Environmental Microbiology, December 2001, p. 5551-5557, Vol. 67, No. 12
Institute of Medical Microbiology, University
of Münster, 48149 Münster,1 and
Department of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, School of
Veterinary Medicine, 30173 Hannover,2 Germany,
and Centre National de Référence des
Toxémies à Staphylocoques EA 1655, Faculté de
Médicine R. T. H. Laennec, 69372 Lyon cedex,
France3
Received 18 June 2001/Accepted 26 September 2001
Staphylococcal food poisoning (SFP) caused by
enterotoxigenic staphylococci is one of the main food-borne diseases.
In contrast to Staphylococcus aureus, a systematic
screening for the enterotoxins has not yet been performed on the
genomic level for the coagulase-positive species S.
intermedius. Therefore, the enterotoxigenic potential of
281 different veterinary (canine, n = 247; equine,
n = 23; feline, n = 9; other,
n = 2) and 11 human isolates of S.
intermedius was tested by using a multiplex PCR
DNA-enzyme immunoassay system targeting the staphylococcal enterotoxin
genes sea, seb, sec, sed, and see. Molecular results were
compared by in vitro testing of enterotoxin production by two
immunoassays. A total of 33 (11.3%) S.
intermedius isolates, including 31 (12.6%) canine
isolates, 1 equine isolate, and 1 human isolate, tested positive for
the sec gene. In vitro production of the respective
enterotoxins was detected in 30 (90.9%) of these isolates by using
immunological tests. In contrast, none of 65 veterinary
specimen-derived isolates additionally tested and comprising 13 (sub)species of coagulase-negative staphylococci were found to be
enterotoxigenic. This study shows on both molecular and immunological
levels that a substantial number of S.
intermedius isolates harbor the potential for
enterotoxin production. Since evidence for noninvasive zoonotic
transmission of S. intermedius from
animal hosts to humans has been documented, an enterotoxigenic role of
this microorganism in SFP via contamination of food products may be assumed.
0099-2240/01/$04.00+0 DOI: 10.1128/AEM.67.12.5551-5557.2001
Copyright © 2001, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.
Enterotoxigenic Potential of
Staphylococcus intermedius
*
Corresponding author. Mailing address: University of
Münster, Institute of Medical Microbiology, D-48149
Münster, Germany. Phone: (49) 251 83-55360. Fax: (49) 251 83-55350. E-mail: kbecker{at}uni-muenster.de.
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