Persistent Endemicity of Salmonella bongori 48:z(35):− in Southern Italy: Molecular Characterization of Human, Animal, and Environmental Isolates

From 1984 to 1999, we collected 31 isolates of the rare serovar Salmonella bongori 48:z(35):− in southern Italy. Twenty-four of the isolates were from cases of acute enteritis in humans. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis analysis showed that all but one of our isolates were at least 80% similar. Our findings suggest that genetically related S. bongori 48:z(35):− strains are endemically circulating in southern Italy.