Whole genome sequencing analysis of enteropathogenic Escherichia coli from human and companion animals in Korea
- Author:
Jae Young OH
1
;
Kyung-Hyo DO
;
Jae Hong JEONG
;
SuMin KWAK
;
Sujin CHOE
;
Dongheui AN
;
Jong-Chan CHAE
;
Kwangjun LEE
;
Kwang-Won SEO
Author Information
- Publication Type:Research Report
- From:Journal of Veterinary Science 2025;26(1):e1-
- CountryRepublic of Korea
- Language:English
-
Abstract:
Objective:To improve our understanding of EPEC, this study focused on analyzing and comparing the genomic characteristics of EPEC isolates from humans and companion animals in Korea.
Methods:The whole genome of 26 EPEC isolates from patients with diarrhea and 20 EPEC isolates from companion animals in Korea were sequenced using the Illumina HiSeq X (Illumina, USA) and Oxford Nanopore MinION (Oxford Nanopore Technologies, UK) platforms.
Results:Most isolates were atypical EPEC, and did not harbor the bfpA gene. The most prevalent virulence genes were found to be ompT (humans: 61.5%; companion animals:60.0%) followed by lpfA (humans: 46.2%; companion animals: 60.0%). Although pangenome analyses showed no apparent correlation among the origin of the strains, virulence profiles, and antimicrobial resistance profiles, isolates included in clade A obtained from both humans and companion animals exhibited high similarity. Additionally, all the isolates included in clade A encoded the ompT gene and did not encode the hlyE gene. The two isolates from companion animals harbored an incomplete bundle-forming pilus region encoding bfpA and bfpB. Moreover, the type IV secretion system-associated genes tra and trb were found in the bfpA-encoding isolates from humans.
Conclusions:and Relevance: Whole-genome sequencing enabled a more accurate analysis of the phylogenetic structure of EPEC and provided better insights into the understanding of EPEC epidemiology and pathogenicity.
