Nine DNA probes for detection of toxin and adhesin genes in Escherichia coli isolated from diarrhoeal disease in animals.

DNA gene probes specific for genes encoding heat labile enterotoxin (LTI), heat stable enterotoxins (STIa, STII), vero cytotoxins (VT1, VT2), and adhesins K88 (F4), K99(F5), F41 and 987P(F6) were used to examine 873 isolates of E. coli from cases of diarrhoea (680 from pigs, 187 from cattle and six from sheep). A total of 188 were toxin gene positive and of these 84 belonged to the classical ETEC serogroups. Of the other 104 toxin gene positive strains, 80 hybridized with the VT2 probe of which 34 were from cases of porcine post-weaning diarrhoea belonging to serogroup 0138:K81 and 22 were untypable strains from cattle.