@article{2488,
  author = {Y Cai and J Gao and X Wang and T Chai and X Zhang and H Duan and S Jiang and B-A Zucker and G Schlenker},
  title = {Clostridium perfringens toxin types from freshwater fishes in one water reservoir of Shandong Province of China, determined by PCR},
  abstract = {Four hundred and twenty intestinal content samples (not including intestinaltissues) of freshwater fishes (60 silver carps, 100 carps, 100 crucian carps, 60catfishes and 100 zaieuws) caught from one water reservoir were examinedbacteriologically for the occurrence of C. perfringens. Isolates were examined bypolymerase chain reaction (PCR) for genes encoding the four lethal toxins ( amp;#945;,  amp;#946;,  amp;#949;and  amp;#953;) for classification into toxin types and for genes encoding enterotoxin andthe novel  amp;#946;2 toxin for further subclassification. C. perfringens could be isolated in75 intestinal contents samples (17.9 %) from freshwater fish including: 13 silvercarps, 2 carps, 12 crucian carps, 40 zaieuws, and 8 catfishes. In 75 isolates, 58strains (77.3 %) were C. perfringens toxin type C ( amp;#945; and  amp;#946; toxin positive), 13 strains(17.3 %) were toxin type A ( amp;#945; toxin positive) and 4 strains (5.3 %) were toxin type B( amp;#945;,  amp;#946; and  amp;#949; toxin positive). In addition, the gene encoding for  amp;#946;2 toxin was foundin 47 strains (62.7 %) of all the isolates, seven from type A, two from type B, and38 from type C. The gene encoding for enterotoxin was not found in any isolate.These amplified toxin gene fragment were cloned and sequenced and comparedwith reference strains, the identity varied from 98.15 % to 99.29 %.This is the first report of C. perfringens  amp;#945;,  amp;#946;,  amp;#949;,  amp;#946;2 toxins in freshwater fish and of amp;#946;,  amp;#949; toxins in fish in general, and is the first discovery that the  amp;#946;2 toxin could bedetected in strains of type B. The origin of this bacterium and its importance tohuman food poisoning in freshwater fish is discussed.},
  year = {2008},
  journal = {Berliner und Münchener Tierärztliche Wochenschrift},
  volume = {115},
  pages = {292-297},
  month = {08/2008},
  publisher = {M. & H. Schaper GmbH},
  address = {Hannover},
  issn = {0341-6593},
  doi = {10.2376/0341-6593-115-292},
  language = {English},
}