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Vibrio cholerae poses a threat to human health, and new epidemic variants have been reported so far. Seventh pandemic V. cholerae strains are characterized by highly related genomic sequences but can be discriminated by a large set of Genomic Islands, phages and Integrative Conjugative Elements. Classical serotyping and biotyping methods do not easily discriminate among new variants arising worldwide, therefore the establishment of new methods for their identification is required. We developed a multiplex PCR assay for the rapid detection of the major 7th pandemic variants of V. cholerae O1 and O139. Three specific genomic islands (GI-12, GI-14 and GI-15), two phages (Kappa and TLC), Vibrio Seventh Pandemic Island 2 (VSP-II), and the ICEs of the SXT/R391 family were selected as targets of our multiplex PCR based on a comparative genomic approach. The optimization and specificity of the multiplex PCR was assessed on 5 V. cholerae 7th pandemic reference strains, and other 34 V. cholerae strains from various epidemic events were analyzed to validate the reliability of our method. This assay had sufficient specificity to identify twelve different V. cholerae genetic profiles, and therefore has the potential to be used as a rapid screening method., (Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Abstract: Genomic islands (GIs) and integrative conjugative elements (ICEs) are major players in bacterial evolution since they encode genes involved in adaptive functions of medical or environmental importance. Here we performed the genomic analysis of ICEVchBan8, an unusual ICE found in the genome of a clinical non-toxigenic Vibrio cholerae O37 isolate. ICEVchBan8 shares most of its genetic structure with SXT/R391 ICEs. However, this ICE codes for a different integration/excision module is located at a different insertion site, and part of its genetic cargo shows homology to other pathogenicity islands of V. cholerae. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]