Survey on resistance occurrence for F4+ and F18+ enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) among pigs reared in Central Italy regions

AbstractPorcine Post Weaning Diarrhoea (PWD) is one of the most important swine disease worldwide, caused by EnterotoxigenicEscherichia coli (ETEC) strains able to provoke management, welfare and sanitary issues. ETEC is determined by proteinaceous surface appendages. Numerous studies conducted by now in pigs have demonstrated, at the enterocytes level, that, the genesmucin 4 (MUC4) andfucosyltransferase (FUT1), coding for ETEC F4 and F18 receptors respectively, can be carriers of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with natural resistance/susceptibility to PWD. The latter aspect was investigated in this study, evaluating the SNPs of theMUC4 andFUT1 genes in slaughtered pigs reared for the most in Central Italy. Genomic DNA was extracted from 362 swine diaphragmatic samples and then was subjected to the detection of known polymorphisms onMUC4 andFUT1candidate target genes by PCR-RFLP. Some of the identified SNPs were confirmed by sequencing analysis. Animals carrying the SNPs associated with resistance were 11% and 86% for theFUT1 andMUC4 genes respectively. Therefore, it can be assumed that the investigated animals may be an important resource and reservoir of favorable genetic traits for the breeding of pigs resistant to enterotoxigenicE.coli F4 variant.
Source: Veterinary Research Communications - Category: Veterinary Research Source Type: research