Molecular epidemiology of non-O1 Vibrio cholerae and Vibrio mimicus in the U.S. Gulf Coast region.

Ten toxigenic Vibrio cholerae non-O1 and V. mimicus strains isolated from clinical and environmental sources in the U.S. Gulf Coast region were examined for genetic relatedness. Restriction digest patterns of chromosomal DNA and Southern blot analysis with a cholera toxin gene probe revealed that the strains exhibited greater genetic divergence than the highly conserved V. cholerae O1 strains isolated from clinical and sewage samples in this region.