Open AccessSerologic and Molecular Characterization of Vibrio parahaemolyticus Strains Isolated from Seawater and Fish Products of the Gulf of Mexico
Author(s) -
María Eugenia Cabrera-García,
Carlos Vázquez-Salinas,
Elsa Irma Quiñones-Ramírez
Publication year - 2004
Publication title -
applied and environmental microbiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.552
H-Index - 324
eISSN - 1070-6291
pISSN - 0099-2240
DOI - 10.1128/aem.70.11.6401-6406.2004
Subject(s) - vibrio parahaemolyticus , hemolysin , biology , microbiology and biotechnology , vibrionaceae , virulence , vibrio infections , vibrio , gene , serology , bacteria , genetics , antibody
The thermostable direct hemolysin (TDH) and TDH-related hemolysin (TRH) are the main virulence factors of Vibrio parahaemolyticus. We isolated V. parahaemolyticus from seawater, fish, and oysters obtained from the Pueblo Viejo Lagoon in Veracruz, determined the serogroups, phenotypically and genotypically characterized TDH and TRH, and investigated the presence of the toxR gene. A total of 46 V. parahaemolyticus strains were isolated, and all of them amplified the 368-bp toxR gene fragment. The trh gene was not identified in any of the strains; 4 of the 46 strains were Kanagawa phenomenon (KP) positive and amplified the 251-bp tdh gene fragment. The most frequent serogroup was serogroup O3. This is the first report of the presence of KP-positive tdh-positive environmental V. parahaemolyticus strains in Mexico.