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Vibrio parahaemolyticus is a gram-negative enteropathogenic marine Vibrio that is capable of causing mild gastroenteritis to severe debilitating dysentery. Infections of the G.I. tract are usually due to consumption of raw shellfish. In addition, extraintestinal infections have been reported to be due to the organism such as eye and ear infections, and wound infections of the extremities. Virulence has been found to be associated with two principle genes that code for (1) a thermally stable direct acting hemolysin (tdh) and (2) a thermally stable direct acting–related hemolysin (trh) that is thermally lable. Virulent strains are usually characterized as Kanagawa Phenomenon (KP) positive which refers to β-hemolysis on a special blood agar known as Wagatsuma blood agar. Epidemiological studies have indicated that specific clones of certain serotypes, notably 03:K6 having enhanced virulence have become endemically established in certain global locals.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Preparation of this review was supported in part by a Special U.S. Department of Agriculture grant on Seafood Safety #2002-4423-11960. This is paper no. 3353 from the Massachusetts Agricultural Experiment Station, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA, 01003, USA.
Notes
Lu, B. (2003). The isolation, enumeration, biochemical and molecular identification of Vibrio vulnificus and Vibrio parahaemolyticus from shellfish. M.S. thesis University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA
Miwatani, T., Sakurai, J., Takeda, Y., and Shinoda, S. (1974). Studies on direct hemolysins of vibrio parahaemolyticus. In: International Symposium on Vibrio parahaemolyticus, T., Miwatani, T. and Takeda, Y. (1976). Vibria parahaemolyticus—A Causative Bacterium of Food Poisoning. Saikon Publ. Co., Tokyo. 149 p