Abstract
Campylobacter spp. are major causes of foodborne illness globally, and are mostly transmitted through the consumption and handling of poultry. Campylobacter infections have widely variable outcomes, ranging from mild enteritis to severe illness, which are attributed to host interactions and the virulence of the infecting strain. In this study, in order to investigate the effect of host stress on the growth and pathogenicity of C. jejuni, three strains associated with human infection and two strains from broilers were subject to growth, motility, adhesion and invasion assays, in response to exposure to catecholamines; epinephrine, norepinephrine and the glucocorticoid neuroendocrine hormones corticosterone, cortisol and cortisone which are associated with stress in humans and broilers. Catecholamines resulted in significantly increased growth, adhesion and invasion of Caco-2 cells. Corticosterone promoted growth in one of five strains, and cortisone resulted in a significant increase in motility in two out of five strains, while no significant differences were observed with the addition of cortisol. It was concluded that stress-associated hormones, especially catecholamines, may promote growth and virulence in Campylobacter.
Highlights
Campylobacter spp. are leading causes of bacterial foodborne illness globally [1]
The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of catecholamines; epinephrine and norepinephrine, and glucocorticoids; corticosterone, cortisol and cortisone on C. jejuni growth, motility, and its ability to adhere to and invade Caco-2 cells, to expand the current knowledge on the association between host stress and C. jejuni infection
Five isolates were selected for this study, three of human clinical origin and two from broilers (Table 1)
Summary
Campylobacter spp. are leading causes of bacterial foodborne illness globally [1]. It is estimated that every year, one in 10 people contract campylobacteriosis globally [2]. In the European Union (EU), over 200,000 cases are reported annually, it is estimated that the real incidence is closer to 9 million cases per annum [3]. Campylobacteriosis costs the EU EUR 2.4 billion annually in healthcare costs and lost working days [3]. Most infections are caused by Campylobacter jejuni, accounting for over 90% of cases [4]. Other species, including C. coli, C. lari, C. upsaliensis and C. fetus, are implicated in human illness, these are less frequently recovered [5]
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