AUTHOR=Chowdhury Goutam , Joshi Sangeeta , Bhattacharya Sanjay , Sekar Uma , Birajdar Balaji , Bhattacharyya Arpita , Shinoda Sumio , Ramamurthy Thandavarayan 

TITLE=Extraintestinal Infections Caused by Non-toxigenic Vibrio cholerae non-O1/non-O139

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Microbiology

VOLUME=7

YEAR=2016

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2016.00144

DOI=10.3389/fmicb.2016.00144

ISSN=1664-302X

ABSTRACT=<p><italic>Vibrio cholerae</italic> is an aerobic, sucrose fermentative Gram-negative bacterium that generally prevails in the environment. Pathogenic <italic>V. cholerae</italic> is well-known as causative agent of acute diarrhea. Apart from enteric infections, <italic>V. cholerae</italic> may also cause other diseases. However, their role in causing extraintestinal infections is not fully known as it needs proper identification and evaluation. Four cases of extraintestinal infections due to <italic>V. cholerae</italic> non-O1/non-O139 have been investigated. The isolates were screened for phenotypic and genetic characteristics with reference to their major virulence genes. Serologically distinct isolates harbored <italic>rtx, msh</italic>, and <italic>hly</italic> but lacked enteric toxin encoding genes that are generally present in toxigenic <italic>V. cholerae</italic>. Timely detection of this organism can prevent fatalities in hospital settings. The underlying virulence potential of <italic>V. cholerae</italic> needs appropriate testing and intervention.</p>