Phylogenicity and Virulence Profiles of Clinical Escherichia coli Isolates in the Ho Teaching Hospital of Ghana

Abstract

Background. Escherichia coli bacteria are Gram-negative, non-spore-forming aerobes or facultative anaerobic rods. Some strains are pathogenic in men while others are commensals in the gut. The pathogenic strains cause a wide array of diseases by virtue of virulence factors. The commensal strains are generally categorized into phylogenetic groups A and B1. The aim of this study was to determine the association between phylogeny of E. coli isolates and virulence and sociodemographic characteristics of the study subjects. Method. This study was a cross-sectional study carried out from July 2018 to June 2019. E. coli isolates obtained from different clinical specimens were subjected to polymerase chain reaction to determine their phylogenetic groupings and virulence. Results. The majority of the isolates belonged to phylogroup A 101 (74.8%), and the predominant virulent gene was fimA (88.9%). There was no significant correlation between phylogenicity and virulence, except for chuA which was found in all isolates that belonged to phylogroups clade I and D. None of the 101 isolates that belonged to group A had the chuA virulence gene. There was a significant association between patient age category and phylogenetic groups B1 and D. Conclusions. This study assessed the relationship between the phylogenetic distribution and the virulence profile of clinical isolates of E. coli. The virulence of isolates belonging to phylogroup A, which are generally considered as commensals, is alarming. Measures must therefore be put in place to control the spread of these virulent E. coli.

Genomic analysis of multidrug-resistant Escherichia coli from Urban Environmental water sources in Accra, Ghana, Provides Insights into public health implications

“…The higher occurrence of phylogroups A and B1, as opposed to B2, aligns with previous research conducted in different environmental settings [61,62]. However, this particular pattern has only been documented in clinical isolates within the Ghanaian context [63]. The elevated occurrence of groups A and B1 can be ascribed to the historically substantial quantities of untreated waste derived from humans and animals that have been discharged into these ecosystems.…”

Genomic heterogeneity of Multidrug Resistance E.coli recovered from diarrheagenic children under five years from Mukuru Informal Settlement, Nairobi, Kenya

“…Uniquely, the study reported more extraintestinal pathogenic E. coli virulence genes than diarrheagenic E.coli virulence genes. The ndings were also con rmed by a higher prevalence of phylogroup B2, associated with extraintestinal infections [49], agreeing with a study conducted in Nigeria with virulence genes signi cantly abundant in phylogroup B2 [35]. This contrasts with a study conducted in India that found diarrheagenic E. coli belonging to phylogroup B1 and A[[6]44], implying that different geographic locations have different patterns of infections, and these ndings highlight that E. coli should not be regarded as non-pathogenic until its virulence genes have been investigated.…”

Carbapenemase Production and Detection of Colistin-Resistant Genes in Clinical Isolates of Escherichia Coli from the Ho Teaching Hospital, Ghana

“…The stored E. coli isolates were retrieved from the freezer, and the surface was scraped aseptically and emulsified in a 30 ml Luria Bertani broth (Oxoid, UK) and incubated overnight in a shaking incubator. The genomic DNA was extracted according to a previous technique used by Deku, Duedu [ 14 ].…”