VAGINAL CARRIAGE OF ENTEROTOXIGENIC BACTEROIDES-FRAGILIS IN PREGNANT-WOMEN

Bacteroides fragilis is an anaerobic bacterial species that is involve d in gynecological infections and pathology. The incidence of vaginal carriage is largely unknown, and in order to study this, 120 pregnant women attending a general hospital for delivery were examined. Culture s were positive for eight of these women (6.6%). Interestingly, potent ial clonal relatedness could be demonstrated among several of the none nterotoxigenic B. fragilis strains. Among the strains, only one produc ed metalloprotease enterotoxin. The presence of the gene for the metal loprotease, giving rise to the pathogenic effect on cultured eukaryoti c HT29/C1 cells, was confirmed by a newly designed specific PCR assay, The enterotoxigenic B. fragilis (ETBF) strain was analyzed with the h elp of arbitrarily primed PCR (AP-PCR) and PCR-mediated ribotyping. Th e ETBF strain was shown to be genetically different compared to severa l other strains obtained from diverse sources. Our data indicate a rel atively high vaginal B. fragilis carriage rate among pregnant women in Warsaw, Poland, Although neither ETBF nor B. fragilis colonization pr esented a clinical problem, the possible genetic relatedness among the colonizing B. fragilis strains indicates the need for additional rese arch in the field of ETBF transmission and molecular epidemiology.