Skip to main content

Lund University Publications

LUND UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES

Co-infection dynamics of a major food-borne zoonotic pathogen in chicken

Skanseng, Beate ; Trosvik, Pal ; Zimonja, Monika ; Johnsen, Gro ; Bjerrum, Lotte ; Pedersen, Karl ; Wallin, Nina LU and Rudi, Knut (2007) In PLoS Pathogens 3(11). p.1790-1797
Abstract
A major bottleneck in understanding zoonotic pathogens has been the analysis of pathogen co-infection dynamics. We have addressed this challenge using a novel direct sequencing approach for pathogen quantification in mixed infections. The major zoonotic food-borne pathogen Campylobacter jejuni, with an important reservoir in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract of chickens, was used as a model. We investigated the co-colonisation dynamics of seven C. jejuni strains in a chicken GI infection trial. The seven strains were isolated from an epidemiological study showing multiple strain infections at the farm level. We analysed time-series data, following the Campylobacter colonisation, as well as the dominant background flora of chickens. Data were... (More)
A major bottleneck in understanding zoonotic pathogens has been the analysis of pathogen co-infection dynamics. We have addressed this challenge using a novel direct sequencing approach for pathogen quantification in mixed infections. The major zoonotic food-borne pathogen Campylobacter jejuni, with an important reservoir in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract of chickens, was used as a model. We investigated the co-colonisation dynamics of seven C. jejuni strains in a chicken GI infection trial. The seven strains were isolated from an epidemiological study showing multiple strain infections at the farm level. We analysed time-series data, following the Campylobacter colonisation, as well as the dominant background flora of chickens. Data were collected from the infection at day 16 until the last sampling point at day 36. Chickens with two different background floras were studied, mature ( treated with Broilact, which is a product consisting of bacteria from the intestinal flora of healthy hens) and spontaneous. The two treatments resulted in completely different background floras, yet similar Campylobacter colonisation patterns were detected in both groups. This suggests that it is the chicken host and not the background flora that is important in determining the Campylobacter colonisation pattern. Our results showed that mainly two of the seven C. jejuni strains dominated the Campylobacter flora in the chickens, with a shift of the dominating strain during the infection period. We propose a model in which multiple C. jejuni strains can colonise a single host, with the dominant strains being replaced as a consequence of strain-specific immune responses. This model represents a new understanding of C. jejuni epidemiology, with future implications for the development of novel intervention strategies. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
; ; ; ; ; ; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
PLoS Pathogens
volume
3
issue
11
pages
1790 - 1797
publisher
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
external identifiers
  • wos:000251310300022
  • scopus:37349056047
ISSN
1553-7366
DOI
10.1371/journal.ppat.0030175
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
86445ed5-9efd-45cf-891a-7ed844631b46 (old id 966480)
date added to LUP
2016-04-01 12:37:40
date last changed
2022-02-04 00:45:15
@article{86445ed5-9efd-45cf-891a-7ed844631b46,
  abstract     = {{A major bottleneck in understanding zoonotic pathogens has been the analysis of pathogen co-infection dynamics. We have addressed this challenge using a novel direct sequencing approach for pathogen quantification in mixed infections. The major zoonotic food-borne pathogen Campylobacter jejuni, with an important reservoir in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract of chickens, was used as a model. We investigated the co-colonisation dynamics of seven C. jejuni strains in a chicken GI infection trial. The seven strains were isolated from an epidemiological study showing multiple strain infections at the farm level. We analysed time-series data, following the Campylobacter colonisation, as well as the dominant background flora of chickens. Data were collected from the infection at day 16 until the last sampling point at day 36. Chickens with two different background floras were studied, mature ( treated with Broilact, which is a product consisting of bacteria from the intestinal flora of healthy hens) and spontaneous. The two treatments resulted in completely different background floras, yet similar Campylobacter colonisation patterns were detected in both groups. This suggests that it is the chicken host and not the background flora that is important in determining the Campylobacter colonisation pattern. Our results showed that mainly two of the seven C. jejuni strains dominated the Campylobacter flora in the chickens, with a shift of the dominating strain during the infection period. We propose a model in which multiple C. jejuni strains can colonise a single host, with the dominant strains being replaced as a consequence of strain-specific immune responses. This model represents a new understanding of C. jejuni epidemiology, with future implications for the development of novel intervention strategies.}},
  author       = {{Skanseng, Beate and Trosvik, Pal and Zimonja, Monika and Johnsen, Gro and Bjerrum, Lotte and Pedersen, Karl and Wallin, Nina and Rudi, Knut}},
  issn         = {{1553-7366}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{11}},
  pages        = {{1790--1797}},
  publisher    = {{Public Library of Science (PLoS)}},
  series       = {{PLoS Pathogens}},
  title        = {{Co-infection dynamics of a major food-borne zoonotic pathogen in chicken}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.ppat.0030175}},
  doi          = {{10.1371/journal.ppat.0030175}},
  volume       = {{3}},
  year         = {{2007}},
}