Open AccessDiversity of pulsed‐field gel electrophoresis patterns of cereulide‐producing isolates of B acillus cereus and B acillus weihenstephanensis
Author(s) -
Castiaux Virginie,
N'Guessan Elise,
Swiecicka Izabela,
Delbrassinne Laurence,
Dierick Katelijne,
Mahillon Jacques
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
fems microbiology letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.899
H-Index - 151
eISSN - 1574-6968
pISSN - 0378-1097
DOI - 10.1111/1574-6968.12423
Subject(s) - bacillus cereus , pulsed field gel electrophoresis , cereus , biology , microbiology and biotechnology , food poisoning , outbreak , bacillus (shape) , gel electrophoresis , bacteria , genotype , virology , genetics , gene
B acillus cereus is an important foodborne pathogen causing diarrhoea, emesis and in, rare cases, lethal poisonings. The emetic syndrome is caused by cereulide, a heat‐stable toxin. Originally considered as a rather homogenous group, the emetic strains have since been shown to display some diversity, including the existence of two clusters of mesophilic B. cereus and psychrotolerant B . weihenstephanensis . Using pulsed‐field gel electrophoresis ( PFGE ) analysis, this research aimed to better understand the diversity and spatio‐temporal occurrence of emetic strains originating from environmental or food niches vs. those isolated from foodborne cases. The diversity was evaluated using a set of 52 B. cereus and B. weihenstephanensis strains isolated between 2000 and 2011 in ten countries. PFGE analysis could discriminate 17 distinct profiles (pulsotypes). The most striking observations were as follows: (1) more than one emetic pulsotype can be observed in a single outbreak; (2) the number of distinct isolates involved in emetic intoxications is limited, and these potentially clonal strains frequently occurred in successive and independent food poisoning cases; (3) isolates from different countries displayed identical profiles; and (4) the cereulide‐producing psychrotolerant B . weihenstephanensis were, so far, only isolated from environmental niches.