College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Basrah discussed a master dissertation on the molecular screening of Shiga toxins in Escherichia coli bacteria isolated from chicken fecal samples by the postgraduate student, Ms. Sara Jassim Mohammed.

The dissertation aimed at diagnosing early infection in birds and controlling pathogenic bacteria in the poultry sector, given their impact on animal and public health.

The dissertation addressed the identification of virulence factors and antibiotic resistance characteristics in isolates of avian hemorrhagic Escherichia coli (STEC) and avian pathogenic Escherichia coli (APEC).

The dissertation demonstrated that the isolates taken from broiler fecal samples did not carry the Shiga toxin genes (stx1 stx2), but a small percentage of them contained virulence genes associated with the avian pathogenic strain, which is characterized by possessing important virulence genes and high resistance to antibiotics used to treat human pathogenic E. coli.