Microbes occupy countless ecological niches in nature. Sometimes these environments may be on or within another organism, as is the case in both microbial infections and symbiosis of mammals. Unlike pathogens that establish opportunistic infections, hundreds of human commensal bacterial species establish a lifelong cohabitation with their hosts. Although many virulence factors of infectious bac...

BACKGROUND Elevators are ubiquitous and active inside hospitals, potentially facilitating bacterial transmission. The objective of this study was to estimate the prevalence of bacterial colonization on elevator buttons in large urban teaching hospitals. METHODS A total of 120 elevator buttons and 96 toilet surfaces were swabbed over separate intervals at 3 tertiary care hospitals on weekdays ...

Campylobacter jejuni is a leading cause of bacterial gastroenteritis in humans throughout the world, but infection of animals, especially poultry, results in a commensal colonization of the intestines. We previously found that a mutant lacking docA, which encodes a putative cytochrome c peroxidase (CCP), demonstrates up to a 10(5)-fold reduction in colonization of the chick cecum compared to wi...

Antibiotic resistance among enterococci and γ-proteobacteria is an increasing problem in healthcare settings. Dense colonization of the gut by antibiotic-resistant bacteria facilitates their spread between patients and also leads to bloodstream and other systemic infections. Antibiotic-mediated destruction of the intestinal microbiota and consequent loss of colonization resistance are critical ...

Helicobacter pylori causes one of the most common, chronic bacterial infections and is a primary cause of severe gastric disorders. To unravel the bacterial factors necessary for the process of gastric colonization and pathogenesis, signature tagged mutagenesis (STM) was adapted to H. pylori. The Mongolian gerbil (Meriones unguiculatus) was used as model system to screen a set of 960 STM mutant...

Yersinia enterocolitica is an enteric pathogen capable of causing systemic disease in a murine model. We have identified a novel protein, systemic factor protein A (SfpA), conserved in other pathogenic bacteria that is involved in systemic disease. Analysis of bacterial colonization revealed that a DeltasfpA strain is defective in mesenteric lymph node colonization. Bioinformatics and functiona...

BACKGROUND Mobile phones (MPs) have been an essential part of the lives of healthcare professionals and have improved communication, collaboration, and sharing of information. Nonetheless, the widespread use of MPs in hospitals has raised concerns of nosocomial infections, especially in areas requiring the highest hygienic standards such as operating rooms (ORs). This study evaluated the incide...

The progression of a natural bacterial infection is a dynamic process influenced by the physiological characteristics of the target organ. Recent developments in live animal imaging allow for the study of the dynamic microbe-host interplay in real-time as the infection progresses within an organ of a live host. Here we used multiphoton microscopy-based live animal imaging, combined with advance...

The type and distribution of bacteria in the jejunal juice of patients with a variety of gastrointestinal conditions that might affect the small intestinal flora were examined. Bacterial colonization of the jejunum defined, in this context, as the occurrence of a bile salttolerant flora consisting of both aerobic and anaerobic bacteria qualitatively resembling that of faeces, was observed only ...

Xanthomonas is one of the most widespread phytobacteria, causing diseases on a variety of agricultural plants. To develop novel control techniques, knowledge of bacterial behavior inside plant cells is essential. Xanthomonas campestris pv. campestris, a vascular pathogen, is the causal agent of black rot on leaves of Brassicaceae, including Arabidopsis thaliana. Among the X. campestris pv. camp...