Three Proteus vulgaris strains from streams

Three cultures of nearly identical strains of Proteus vulgaris were isolated from three stream locations in western North Carolina. The isolates originated from waters that had previously been shown to contain high numbers of fecal coliform bacteria. The 16S rRNA from the three P. vulgaris isolates matched 99.9% to P. vulgaris strain ATCC 29905. These isolates are of interest due to their ability to resist multiple antibiotics and metals and their virulence and pathogenicity factors. At the genome level, these strains do not match as closely to the ATCC 29905 strain as to other strains. Their discovery in freshwater ecosystems used by people for food and recreation raises some concern about safe use of these resources.