Escherichia coli O157:H7 Causes More-Severe Systemic Disease in Suckling Piglets than in Colostrum-Deprived Neonatal Piglets

Our objective was to determine if suckling neonatal piglets are susceptible to enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC) O157:H7 disease. Surprisingly, EHEC O157:H7 caused more-rapid and more-severe neurological disease in suckling neonates than in those fed an artificial diet. Shiga toxin-negative O157:H7 did not cause neurological disease but colonized and caused attaching-and-effacing intestinal lesions.