Abstract
Ulcerative colitis (UC) resembles clinically and histologically the newly recognized hemorrhagic colitis which has been etiologically linked to colonic colonization with Shiga-like toxin (SLT) producing E.coli 0157:H7. This prompted us to investigate a possible common infectious origin.
SLT-producing non-0157 E.coli were identified in the feces from 4 out of 10 patients aged 10 to 35 years with exacerbating UC but not in juvenile patients with active Crohn's disease (n=5) using colony blot hybridization tests with SLT-I and SLT-II gene specific oligo-DNA probes. Stool filtrates in 5 of 7 cases of UC were cytotoxic for Vero and HeLa cells (titers 1:20 to 1:512). Two patients were treated antibiotically, and clinical remission with concomittant elimination of SLT producing strains was observed.
Our findings suggest that SLT producing bacteria may play a role in supporting or exacerbating UC and that antiinfectives may be of therapeutic value in some patients.
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Bitzan, M., Von Wulffen, H. & Karch, H. SHIGA-LIKE TOXIN PRODUCING ESCHERICHIA COLI ASSOCIATED WITH ULCERATIVE COLITIS. Pediatr Res 26, 509 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-198911000-00061
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-198911000-00061
