Prevalence of virulence genes (ctxA, stn, OmpW and tcpA) among non-O1 Vibrio cholerae isolated from fresh water environment

The virulence of a pathogen is reliant on the presence of a discrete set of genetic determinants and their expression in the host. The virulence of Vibrio spp. is regulated by the ctxAB and tcpA genes. These genes are alleged to be exclusively associated with clinical strains of O1 and O139 serogroups. In the present study, we examined the presence of virulence genes viz. stn, OmpW, ctxA and tcpA of classical and ElTor variants, in environmental strains of non-O1 Vibrio cholerae cultured seasonally from four sampling stations of the river Narmada at Jabalpur (MP), India. Unexpectedly, the PCR analysis of the strains revealed the presence of these genes among environmental V. cholerae. The strains harboring the tcpA gene also carried the ctxA gene. Sequencing of the tcpA gene and ctxA gene carried by an environmental strain showed ∼97% homology with the previously sequenced genes submitted in the GenBank. We report here the prevalence of cholera toxin gene and the gene for toxin co-regulated pilus among non-O1 V. cholerae strains isolated from fresh water environment. This study supports the idea that cholera toxin has an environmental derivation and that the intricate aquatic environment can give rise to pathogenic Vibrio organisms.