Production of the vacuolation factor of Bacillus cereus isolated from vomiting-type food poisoning.

Vacuole response in HEp-2 cells was induced with culture supernatants of Bacillus cereus strains isolated from outbreaks of vomiting- and diarrheal-type food poisoning grown in rice flour and laboratory media. High vacuole response was obtained with culture supernatants of B. cereus strains isolated from vomiting-type food poisoning grown in cooked rice suspension or on a cooked rice plate, whereas no response was obtained with those of the same strains grown in brain heart infusion and trypto-soya broth media. The vacuole activity appeared only after spore formation of B. cereus. The activity was stable to proteolytic enzymes, heating, and exposing to pH 2.0 and 11.0. Of 124 strains isolated from B. cereus food poisoning that were tested, the vacuole activity was observed by 68 of 110 (61.8%) of the strains isolated from the vomiting-type food poisoning but not by all strains (14 strains) from diarrheal-type ones. Moreover, the vacuole response in the HEp-2 cells was found to be induced by 56 of 76 (73.7%) of the serotype H-1 strains isolated from vomiting-type food poisoning.