Phenotypic and phylogenetic analysis of Vibrio parahaemolyticus isolates recovered from diarrhea cases in Guangdong Province, China

• We characterized 108 V. parahaemolyticus recovered from Guangdong Province, China.
• Three dominant serotypes from cases were O3:K6, O4:K8 and O1: KUT (untyped).
• MLST analysis revealed 31 sequence types (STs); while 17 STs were unique this study.
• The CC345 (O4:K8) is another important clonal complex affecting Guangdong Province.

Vibrio parahaemolyticus has emerged as a common foodborne pathogen of global concern. In this study, 108 V. parahaemolyticus isolates that recovered from diarrhea cases (n = 96) and seafood products (n = 12) in Guangdong Province from 2007 to 2011 were characterized by serotyping, tdh and trh toxin gene detection and multilocus sequence typing (MLST). The dominant serotypes from the cases were O3:K6, O4:K8 and O1: KUT (untyped). However, most isolates recovered from seafood products belonged to other serotypes. None of the isolates carried the trh gene, while the major isolates from the cases were tdh positive. MLST analysis revealed 31 sequence types (STs); 17 STs were unique in this study. eBURST analysis revealed four clonal complexes (CC), The majority of the isolates (n = 58, all from cases and tdh+) were grouped into the CC3, which included O3:K6, O4:K68 and O1:KUT isolates. The CC3 was the most prevalent clonal complex, and all of the CC3 isolates were recovered from clinical cases of geographically diverse origin. As to the CC345, which was completely constituted by O4:K8, was another important clonal complex affecting Guangdong Province. Ongoing surveillance of V. parahaemolyticus in diarrhea patients and seafood products remains a public health priority for Guangdong Province, China.