Feng P
U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Washington, D.C. 20204, USA.
Emerg Infect Dis. 1995 Apr-Jun;1(2):47-52. doi: 10.3201/eid0102.950202.
Escherichia coli serotype O157:H7 was only recognized as a human pathogen a little more than a decade ago, yet it has become a major foodborne pathogen. In the United States, the severity of serotype O157:H7 infections in the young and the elderly has had a tremendous impact on human health, the food industry, and federal regulations regarding food safety. The implication of acidic foods as vehicles of infection has dispelled the concept that low-pH foods are safe. Further, the association of nonbovine products with outbreaks suggests that other vehicles of transmission may exist for this pathogen. In laboratory diagnosis, most microbiologic assays rely on a single phenotype to selectively isolate this pathogen. However, the increasing evidence that phenotypic variations exist among isolates in this serogroup may eventually necessitate modifications in assay procedures to detect them.
大肠杆菌O157:H7血清型在十多年前才被确认为人类病原体，但它已成为一种主要的食源性病原体。在美国，O157:H7血清型感染对年轻人和老年人的严重程度对人类健康、食品行业以及食品安全方面的联邦法规产生了巨大影响。酸性食品作为感染媒介的影响消除了低pH值食品是安全的这一观念。此外，非牛产品与疫情的关联表明，这种病原体可能存在其他传播媒介。在实验室诊断中，大多数微生物检测依靠单一表型来选择性分离这种病原体。然而，越来越多的证据表明，该血清群中的分离株存在表型变异，这最终可能需要对检测程序进行修改以检测到它们。
