This study investigated the presence of Shiga toxin E. coli (STEC) strains in water from five selected valley dams, frequented by humans and cattle, in the pastoral areas of Kiruhura district Uganda. From each dam, three samples were collected at different sites and in total 45 water samples were collected. Escherichia coli counts in all water samples (45) exceeded the acceptable limits. Significantly, all dams were not barrier protected from animals and run-off rain water which contained faecal material. The presence of STEC as determined by PCR detection of stx genes showed 3 of the 5 dams contained STEC. The strains belonged to serogroup O166, which had not been previously isolated from water sources. eae gene was detected in 2 strains belonging to this serogroup and in one non-typeable. Pulsed field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) analysis showed that STEC strains were genetically unrelated, suggesting faecal pollution from more than one source. Contamination of the valley dams with high counts of E. coli and pathogens such as STEC O166, strongly suggested that valley dams were potential reservoirs of water -borne diarrhoeal pathogens for the pastoral community.
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