TITLE:
Molecular Prevalence and Epidemiological Characteristics of Diarrheagenic E. coli in Children under 5 Years Old in the City of Koula-Moutou, East-Central Gabon
AUTHORS:
Rolande Mabika Mabika, Sandrine Lydie Oyegue Liabagui, Hilaire Kenguele Moundounga, Franck Mounioko, Alain Souza, Jean Fabrice Yala
KEYWORDS:
Diarrhea, Children, Diarrheagenic E. coli, β-Lactamases, Multiplex PCR
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Medical Microbiology,
Vol.11 No.3,
August
30,
2021
ABSTRACT: Background
and Purpose: Diarrhoeagenic E.
coli (DEC) is one of the germs responsible for childhood diarrhea in
developing countries. This study aims at determining the prevalence of the five
main pathotypes of DEC isolated from faeces of children under five years old
with diarrhea or not, living in the city of Koula-Moutou. Methodology: Isolates
of E. coli were phenotypically
screened on chromIDTM agar and molecularly by multiplex PCR to
detect the presence of enteroaggregative E. coli (EAEC), enteropathogenic E. coli (EPEC), enterotoxigenic E. coli (ETEC), enterohemorragic E. coli (EHEC) and enteroinvasive E. coli (EIEC). The evaluation of their
sensitivity to 12 β-lactam antibiotic
molecules was carried out by Kirby Bauer method. This method has also made it
possible to characterize phenotypically the different β-lactamases produced. Results and Conclusion: Overall, at
least one DEC pathovar was detected in the 63 E. coli strains with phenotypic and molecular frequencies of 63.5% and 68.5% respectively. Thus, ETEC (28.3%)
and EHEC (28.3%) were the most frequent DEC in diarrheal isolates.
ETEC/EHEC hybrid was recorded in both groups with rates of 7.5% in diarrheal
cases and 10.0% for controls. The results
showed produced carbapenemase type β-lactamases (31.7%), followed by ESBL (24.4%) and few produced high level penicillinases
(4.9%). The DEC, in particular ETEC and EHEC are most likely the
epidemiological agents responsible for childhood diarrhea in this study.