Identification and characterization of a K88- and CS31A-like operon of a rabbit enteropathogenic Escherichia coli strain which encodes fimbriae involved in the colonization of rabbit intestine

Abstract

Initiation of attaching-effacing lesions, which characterize infections with rabbit enteropathogenic Escherichia call (REPEC), requires bacteria to adhere to the intestinal epithelium. This adherence is reflected in vitro by the affinity of these E. coli strains for various types of eukaryotic cells. TnphoA mutants of REPEC 83/39 (O15:H-) which had lost the ability to adhere to HEp-2 epithelial cells, guinea pig ileal brush borders, and mouse erythrocytes were generated. DNA sequencing of the region surrounding the inactivating transposon insertions within a 95-kb plasmid, designated pRAP for REPEC adherence plasmid, revealed extensive homology between that region and the structural genes of..