Advances in Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli F4 Receptors in Piglets

Strains of enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli that express F4 fimbriae(ETEC F4)are an major cause of diarrhea and mortality in newborn and weaned piglets.The F4 fimbriae mediate adhesion of bacteria to receptors on porcine intestinal epithelial cells,which is the initial step in the establishment of enteric infection.In this paper,the adhesion patterns of ETEC F4 fimbriae,the detection and distribution of F4-specific receptors were reviewed,the biochemical properties of F4-specific receptors,the mapping and cloning of the recptor locus were also summarized.Future perspective on F4-specific receptors research and application were also discussed in this paper.