Glossary of Terms

Escherichia coli O157:H7
E. coli O157:H7 (esh e-rik e-ah, ko li) is one of hundreds of strains of the bacterium Escherichia coli. Although most strains are harmless and live in the intestines of healthy humans and animals, this strain produces a powerful toxin and can cause severe illness. E. coli O157:H7 was first recognized as a cause of illness in 1982 during an outbreak of severe bloody diarrhea; the outbreak was traced to contaminated hamburgers. Since then, most infections have come from eating undercooked ground beef. The combination of letters and numbers in the name of the bacterium refers to the specific markers found on its surface and distinguishes it from other types of E. coli.

Hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS)
Hemolytic (HEE-mo-LIT-ik) uremic (yoo-REE-mik) syndrome is a rare condition affecting mostly children under the age of 10. Hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) is characterized by destruction of red blood cells, damage to the lining of blood vessel walls, and, in severe cases, kidney failure. Most cases of HUS occur after an infection in the digestive system caused by the Escherichia colibacterium found on contaminated food like meat, dairy products, and juice.

Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE)
DNA "fingerprinting" method used to determine if isolates from different sources (i.e., different patients or patient(s) and environmental isolates) are the same.

PulseNet
A national network that enables public health laboratories to perform DNA "fingerprinting" on bacteria that may be foodborne and compare results through an electronic database maintained by CDC.

Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP)
HACCP is an internationally recognized food safety methodology which provides the framework for hazard identification and control.