Diarrheagenic and Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli

To the Editor: The elegantly precise adjective “enteropathogenic” as applied to Escherichia coli has undergone a shift in meaning since its introduction by Neter in 1955¹ and is in need of redefinition to prevent confusion. The enteropathogenic Esch. coli was so named to distinguish the serogroups associated with enteric disease from those responsible for extraintestinal pathologic changes. Thus, this term originally was applied to all diarrhea-associated Esch. coli. As pathogenic mechanisms were investigated and enterotoxigenic and enteroinvasive Esch. coli were described, some authors continued to use the term “enteropathogenic” for all diarrhea-associated Esch. coli, whereas others used this. No extract is available for articles shorter than 400 words.