Abstract

Background: Salmonella enterica serovar enteritidis is currently the most frequent serovar causing salmonellosis in humans. The incidence of gastrointestinal infections caused by S. enteritidis increased during the last decade. The aim of this study was to evaluate the genetic diversity of S. enteritidis isolates from Tehran (Iran) hospitals using ribotyping methods. Methods: In a descriptive study from April 2008 to December 2011, clinical samples such as fecal and blood specimens of the cases having symptoms of salmonellae infection were collected from different hospitals in Tehran. Salmonella isolation was carried out by bacteriological and serological methods. The relationship between the strains was determined using ribotyping. Findings: Of 68 Salmonella spp. strains, 29 isolates were S. enteritidis. Ribotyping was able to differentiate all isolates. The size of the bands ranged from 1.4 to 16.8 kb in all ribotypes. S. enteritidis isolates were divided into three clusters (1d to 3d). Most strains (20) belonged to the 1d cluster. Conclusion: Our results indicated that S. enteritidis strains circulating in Tehran mainly belong to a limited ribotype.