Prevalence of Escherichia coli O157:H7 in Clinical and Food Samples: A Cross-sectional Study

Hossainpour, Hadi; Alvandi, Amir hooshang; Mohammad Yousef, Alikhani; Moradi, Abdollah; Mahmoudi, Hassan

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Prevalence of Escherichia coli O157:H7 in Clinical and Food Samples: A Cross-sectional Study

Hadi Hossainpour¹

, Amir hooshang Alvandi²

, Alikhani Mohammad Yousef³

, Abdollah Moradi⁴

, Hassan Mahmoudi⁵

1- Department of Microbiology, School of Medicine, Ardabil University of Medical Sciences, Ardabil, Iran.
2- Medical Technology Research Center, Health Technology Institute, Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Kermanshah, Iran.
3- Infectious Disease Research Center, Avicenna Institute of Clinical Sciences, Hamadan University of Medical Sciences, Hamadan, Iran
4- Department of Microbiology, Science and Research Branch. Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.
5- Nahavand School of Allied Medical Sciences, Hamadan University of Medical Sciences. Hamadan, Iran. , Hassanmahmoudi24@gmail.com

Abstract: (5 Views)

Background and Aim: Escherichia coli O157:H7 is a virulent strain known for producing a toxin called Shiga toxin, which can damage intestinal and kidney cells and lead to symptoms such as bloody diarrhea and kidney failure. Food poisoning is a significant public health issue worldwide.
Materials and Methods: Sixty-two food samples, including raw chicken meat, milk, and beef, were randomly collected from several supermarkets in different areas of Hamadan City, Iran. Additionally, 62 E. coli strains were collected from various clinical specimens, including wounds, urine, blood, and cerebrospinal fluid, from Besat Hospital in Hamadan, Iran, and analyzed for E. coli O157:H7 contamination. All samples were cultured on specific media, and any suspicious colonies were subjected to PCR for detection of E. coli O157 H7 strain using two target genes.
Results: In total two clinical samples and 8 food samples tested positive for E. coli O157:H7 phenotypically. All ten isolates were positive for the presence of target genes using PCR. The highest frequency was related to contaminated food, particularly beef, with a frequency of 12.9%.
Conclusion: The results indicate that the prevalence of this organism, especially in beef, is higher than the global average. Therefore, it is better to implement more precise controls in the production and maintenance processes of food samples.