Campylobacter
Dongyou Liu in Laboratory Models for Foodborne Infections, 2017
Campylobacter jejuni is a common foodborne pathogen that can trigger serious diarrhea in infected patients. Proper laboratory models for infection have been difficult to establish due to C. jejuni being a commensal or transient colonizer in most potential animal models of infection. Cellular infection models, such as the Caco-2 and HT-29 cell lines have proven to be an effective model for studying cellular interactions. Chicks and germfree mice are useful models for commensal colonization, whereas ferrets, piglets, and certain knockout mouse strains can be used as effective models for human disease. Herein, we have discussed how each of these models has been used, the advantages and disadvantages, and some of what has been learned about Campylobacter from each model.
Autoimmune conditions
Ibrahim Natalwala, Ammar Natalwala, E Glucksman in MCQs in Neurology and Neurosurgery for Medical Students, 2022
Increased protein levels with a near-normal cell count in the CSF together with the history are highly suggestive of Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS). This classic finding is also known as albuminocytologic dissociation. The syndrome is associated with recent infections that result in autoimmune attack of peripheral myelin due to molecular mimicry. Campylobacter jejuni, which causes a severe gastroenteritis, is a common antecedent to this syndrome. Inflammation and demyelination of ventral roots causes symmetric ascending muscle weakness beginning in the distal lower extremities. Paralysis of muscles required for respiration can occur if left untreated, leading to respiratory depression or even death. Autonomic dysfunction can result in cardiac arrhythmias as well as hypertension or hypotension.14
Practice Paper 2: Answers
Anthony B. Starr, Hiruni Jayasena, David Capewell, Saran Shantikumar in Get ahead! Medicine, 2016
Guillain–Barré syndrome (GBS), also known as postinfective demyelinating polyneuropathy, is an immune-mediated demyelination of the spinal roots or peripheral nerves. It often develops weeks after a respiratory or diarrhoeal infection, especially with Campylobacter jejuni. Patients present with rapidly progressive muscle weakness, which ascends from the lower to the upper limbs, with loss of deep tendon reflexes. Distal paraesthesia, limb pain and facial/bulbar weakness may also develop. Twenty percent of cases develop respiratory weakness requiring ventilator support, so it is important to measure serial peak flows in all patients. It is recommended that bedside spirometry be performed every 6 hours and, if they deteriorate, the patient should be transferred to ICU for monitoring and elective intubation. An unusual variant (described by Miller Fisher) is characterized by ophthalmoplegia, ataxia and areflexia. Management of GBS is mainly supportive. Immunotherapy with intravenous immunoglobulins (IVIGs) and plasma exchange have both been shown to be equally efficacious in treating GBS. Around 85% make a good functional recovery, whilst some are left with residual disability. Of those patients requiring mechanical ventilation, mortality is 20%.
Campylobacter jejuni induces autoimmune peripheral neuropathy via Sialoadhesin and Interleukin-4 axes
Published in Gut Microbes, 2022
Ankit Malik, Jean M. Brudvig, Barbie J. Gadsden, Alexander D. Ethridge, Linda S. Mansfield
Campylobacter jejuni is a gram-negative foodborne bacterium that affects 1.4 million individuals annually in the United States and is a leading cause of gastroenteritis worldwide.1Campylobacter jejuni is ubiquitous in the gastrointestinal (GI) tracts of chickens and food animals2,3 and ingestion of contaminated meat or milk results in inflammatory diarrhea of the colon that can be hemorrhagic. The majority of healthy adults with campylobacteriosis experience GI disease for 7–10 days followed by resolution, but it has been a cause of mortality in high-risk individuals.4,5 Infection or disease due to C. jejuni has also been linked to development and flare-ups of other chronic enteric diseases including Irritable Bowel Syndrome and Inflammatory Bowel Disease.6,7
Functional analysis and cryo-electron microscopy of Campylobacter jejuni serine protease HtrA
Published in Gut Microbes, 2020
Urszula Zarzecka, Alessandro Grinzato, Eaazhisai Kandiah, Dominik Cysewski, Paola Berto, Joanna Skorko-Glonek, Giuseppe Zanotti, Steffen Backert
Campylobacter jejuni is an important Gram-negative human pathogen responsible for gastrointestinal infections known as campylobacteriosis. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) reported in 2017 that campylobacteriosis had become the most commonly reported zoonosis in the European Union, representing almost 70% of all the reported cases of infection in humans.1 Although the infection is self-limiting in most cases, in a subset of individuals campylobacteriosis may lead to Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) or Miller Fisher syndrome, which are autoimmune conditions.2 In addition, a correlation was observed between various pathological gastrointestinal conditions such as inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), Barrett’s esophagus, colorectal cancer and C. jejuni infection.3 The optimum temperature for growth of C. jejuni is 42°C, which means that the bacteria adapted to the body temperature in birds. Thus, C. jejuni can be frequently isolated from chicken and other poultry, which serve as hosts and reservoirs that are colonized asymptomatically.4,5 Moreover, C. jejuni and Campylobacter coli together are responsible for more than 95% of Campylobacter infections in humans.6 The potential sources of C. jejuni infections are handling or consumption of contaminated (undercooked) meat, cross-contaminated other foods, unpasteurized milk, contaminated water, or direct animal contact via household pets and farm animals.7
Seroprevalence and risk factors for Campylobacter jejuni seropositivity in Jordan
Published in Infectious Diseases, 2019
Campylobacter jejuni is a major cause of gastroenteritis worldwide, which usually causes prodromal signs (fever, headache, and myalgia) for 24 hrs. Following the prodromal signs, the disease progresses to diarrhoea (watery and frequently bloody) and abdominal cramps, which may become severe. These symptoms usually peak within 24–48 hrs and then gradually resolve over a week [1]. In addition, some C. jejuni serotypes may cause autoimmune conditions such as Miller Fisher syndrome and Guillain-Barré syndrome [2]. It has been speculated that a dose as low as 360 CFU of C. jejuni can cause campylobacteriosis in humans [3]. While C. jejuni infection can occur in all ages, infection is more prevalent in children between one and four years of age and young adults between 15 and 24 years of age [4].
Related Knowledge Centers
- Bacteria
- Reactive Arthritis
- Gastroenteritis
- Pathogenic Bacteria
- Foodborne Illness
- Feces
- Gram-Negative Bacteria
- NON-Fermenter
- Guillain–Barré Syndrome
- Hla-B27