Serotyping, stx2 subtyping, and characterization of the locus of enterocyte effacement island of shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli and E. coli O157:H7 strains isolated from the environment in France.

Twenty-seven Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) strains were isolated from 207 stx-positive French environmental samples. Ten of these strains were positive for stx1, and 24 were positive for stx2 (10 were positive for stx2vh-a or stx2vh-b, 19 were positive for stx2d, and 15 were positive for stx2e). One strain belonged to serotype O157:H7, and the others belonged to serogroups O2, O8, O11, O26, O76, O103, O113, O121, O141, O166, and O174. The environment is a reservoir in which new clones of STEC that are pathogenic for humans can emerge.