Multiplex PCR amplification of uidA, cth, invA, ctx, and tl genes was developed enabling simultaneous detection in shellfish of Escherichia coli, an indicator of fecal contamination and microbial pathogens, Salmonella typhimurium, Vibrio vulnificus, V. cholerae, and V. parahaemolyticus, respectively. Each of the five pairs of oligonucleotide primers was found to support PCR amplifications of only its targeted gene. The optimized multiplex, PCR reaction utilized a PCR reaction buffer containing 2.5 mM MgCl2 and primer annealing temperature of 55 degrees C. Oyster tissue homogenate seeded with these microbial pathogens was subjected to DNA purification by the Chelex(TM) 100 (BioRad) method. The sensitivity of detection for each of the microbial pathogens was less than or equal to 10(1)-10(2) cells following a "double" multiplex PCR amplification approach. Amplified target genes in a multiplex PCR reaction were subjected to a colorimetric GeneComb(TM) (BioRad) DNA-DNA hybridization assay. This assay was rapid and showed sensitivity of detection comparable to the agarose gel electrophoresis method. The colorimetric GeneComb(TM) assay avoids use of hazardous materials inherent in conventional gel electrophoresis and radioactive-based hybridization methods. Multiplex PCR amplification, followed by colorimetric GeneComb(TM) DNA-DNA hybridization, has been shown to be an effective, sensitive, and rapid method to detect microbial pathogens in shellfish.