Human commensal strains of E. coli from Paris and its suburban area between 2009 and 2011. These strains were isolated from participants living in the community and volunteered to self-collect a faecal swab sample.. Human commensal strains of E. coli from Paris and its suburban area

Subjects were recruited by general practitioners of the Department of General Practice of the University Paris Diderot from the region of Ile-de-France (Paris, France, and its suburban area) from May 2009 to December 2011. All participants lived in the community and volunteered to self-collect a faecal swab sample. The inclusion criteria were: age of 18 years or more, no history of gastrointestinal disease, no symptoms of immunosuppression, no antibiotic therapy in the previous month and no hospitalisation in the 3 months preceding inclusion. Written informed consent was obtained from each participant, and the study was approved by the ethics evaluation committee of Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (INSERM) (CCTIRS no. 09.243, CNIL no. 909277, and CQI no. 01-014).