Typical Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli

Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC) is a leading cause of infantile diarrhea in developing countries. EPEC colonizes the small intestine and causes attaching-and-effacing (A/E) lesions, a phenotype encoded on the locus of enterocyte effacement (LEE) pathogenicity island. LEE encodes the components of a type III secretion system, various effector molecules, and the intimin gene (eae). Typical EPEC strains contain, in addition to eae, the EPEC adherence factor (EAF) plasmid, which encodes the bundle-forming pili that mediate localized adherence to epithelial cells, whereas atypical do not possess this plasmid. The exact mechanism of diarrhea production is not fully understood. Diagnosis of EPEC is now based on molecular methods to detect virulence characteristics. EPEC-induced diarrhea is self-limiting, and oral rehydration is effective.