Prevalence and population analysis of Vibrio parahaemolyticus in retail aquatic products from the southern Fujian coast, China.

Vibrio parahaemolyticus is one of the most hazardous pathogens causing seafood‐borne diseases in the southern Fujian coast, China. From June to October 2016, a total of 250 samples were collected from retail markets in the Xiamen, Quanzhou, and Zhangzhou regions. Seventy‐seven V. parahaemolyticus isolates were identified using polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Then, molecular typing was performed using repetitive extragenic palindromic‐PCR (REP‐PCR). The distribution of seven virulence genes was detected by PCR. In aquatic products, the prevalence of V. parahaemolyticus was 30.8%, and the prevalence of tdh+ and trh+ was 2.6 and 1.3%, respectively. The prevalence of type III secretion system‐2 (T3SS2) and the ureC gene was 5.2 and 3.9%, respectively. All 77 strains and the reference strain V. parahaemolyticus ATCC 17802 were classified into seven molecular types using REP‐PCR. Thus, our findings demonstrated that the prevalence of V. parahaemolyticus was severe in the southern Fujian coast and that the regulations for aquatic food safety should be strengthened. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]