PRODUCTION OF ENTEROTOXIN, VEROTOXIN, HEMOLYSIN AND CYTOTOXIC NECROTIZING FACTOR BY ESCHERICHIA-COLI OF INTESTINAL AND EXTRAINTESTINAL ORIGIN

Seventy-six Escherichia coli strains were examined for heat-labile ent erotoxin (LT), verotoxin (VT), hemolysin (HLy) and cytotoxic necrotizi ng factor (CNF). Thirty-six strains were isolated from patients suffer ing from diarrhea and forty from different extraintestinal infections. The number of LT-producing strains was low (2.6 %) (one of intestinal and one of extraintestinal origin). Verotoxin was produced only by on e extraintestinal strain. Four intestinal strains were hemolytic (11.2 %) and also positive for CNF. From W hemolytic strains of extraintest inal origin (60 %), 17 produced also CNF. Most of the hemolytic (30 %) as well as CNF-producing strains (22.5 %) were isolated from urine. O ur results ate similar to those of other studies confirming the close association between hemolysin and CNF production as well as a possible role of these toxic factors in pathogenesis of extraintestinal infect ions caused by E. coli.