Comparative analysis of attachment of Shiga-toxigenic Escherichia coli and Salmonella strains to cultured HT-29 and Caco-2 cell lines.

The ability of Escherichia coli and Salmonella isolates to attach to Caco-2 and HT-29 cell monolayers was measured. All isolates displayed a greater ability to attach to Caco-2 cells than HT-29 cells, and overall E. coli isolates attached better to both cell lines than Salmonella isolates. Bacteria that were considered to be pathogenic displayed no greater ability to attach to cell lines than those that were not considered to be pathogenic. Additionally, no correlation was found between cell line attachment and previously determined hydrophobicity results.