Citrobacter rodentium of mice and man

Abstract

SummaryThe major classes of enteric bacteria harbour a conserved core genomic structure, common to both commensal and pathogenic strains, that is most likely optimized to a life style involving colonization of the host intestine and transmission via the environment. In pathogenic bacteria this core genome framework is decorated with novel genetic islands that are often associated with adaptive phenotypes such as virulence. This classical genome organization is well illustrated by a group of extracellular enteric pathogens, which includes enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC), enterohaemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC) and Citrobacter rodentium , all of which use attaching and effacing (A/E) lesion formation as a major mechanism of tissue targeting and infection. Both EHEC and EPEC are poorly pathogenic in mice but infect humans and domestic animals. In contrast, C. rodentium is a natural mouse pathogen that is related to E. coli , hence providing an excellent in vivo model for A/E lesion forming pathogens. C. rodentium also provides a model of infections that are mainly restricted to the lumen of the intestine. The mechanism's by which the immune system deals with such infections has become a topic of great interest in recent years. Here we review the literature of C. rodentium from its emergence in the mid-1960s to the most contemporary reports of colonization, pathogenesis, transmission and immunity.

Influence of Gastric Acid on Susceptibility to Infection with Ingested Bacterial Pathogens

“…S. enterica serovar Typhimurium causes enteritis in humans and in mice produces a disease that resembles typhoid fever (30). C. rodentium is a mouse pathogen that produces characteristic attaching and effacing lesions indistinguishable from those produced by enteropathogenic and enterohemorrhagic strains of Escherichia coli, which also cause diarrhea in humans (19,20). C. perfringens, an anaerobic, spore-forming, gram-positive rod, is a common cause of food poisoning in humans, causing stomach cramps and diarrhea (28).…”

Identification and characterization of Cri1, a locus controlling mortality during Citrobacter rodentium infection in mice

“…[1][2][3][4][5] More recently, infection of mice with this intestinal pathogen has become recognized as an excellent model for infection with the human-specific diarrheal pathogens enterohemorrhagic and enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EHEC and EPEC; reviewed in Mundy et al 6 ). EPEC kills several hundred thousand children each year in developing countries, 7 whereas EHEC is commonly associated with foodborne diarrheal outbreaks in the developed world.…”

Functional studies of intimin in vivo and ex vivo: implications for host specificity and tissue tropism

“…For this reason, infection of mice with Citrobacter rodentium (CR), a natural mouse pathogen that shares many of its virulence factors and mechanism of colonization with EPEC and EHEC, has become a popular surrogate model for in vivo studies (Mundy et al , 2005). …”

“…When adhering to intestinal epithelial cells EPEC, EHEC and CR subvert cytoskeletal processes to produce a histopathological feature known as an attaching and effacing (A/E) lesion (Nataro & Kaper, 1998; Garmendia et al , 2005; Mundy et al , 2005). This is characterized by localized destruction of brush border microvilli and intimate attachment of the bacteria to the plasma membrane of the host epithelial cells.…”