Abstract
The plasmid pVir may play a role in the virulence of Campylobacter jejuni, a leading cause of bacterial gastroenteritis. The pVir plasmid was identified in 17% of 104 C. jejuni clinical isolates studied and was significantly associated with the occurrence of blood in patient stool, a marker of invasive infection. The pVir plasmid was not associated with greater occurrence of diarrhea, fever, pain, vomiting, or need for patient hospitalization. Isolates containing pVir were also associated with the presence of a tetracycline-resistance plasmid, but pVir did not transfer with tetracycline-resistance plasmids to recipient strains of C. jejuni. The association of pVir and bloody stool suggests that pVir may be clinically relevant in C. jejuni infections.
Highlights
The plasmid pVir may play a role in the virulence of Campylobacter jejuni, a leading cause of bacterial gastroenteritis
Infection with C. jejuni can result in a wide array of clinical symptoms, including diarrhea, fever, abdominal pain, and vomiting, as well as bloody stool with severe invasive infection [3]
Bloody stool was reported in 27% of patients and vomiting in 30% of patients; 18% of patients were hospitalized for treatment of severe dehydration
Summary
The plasmid pVir may play a role in the virulence of Campylobacter jejuni, a leading cause of bacterial gastroenteritis. The pVir plasmid was identified in 17% of 104 C. jejuni clinical isolates studied and was significantly associated with the occurrence of blood in patient stool, a marker of invasive infection. The association of pVir and bloody stool suggests that pVir may be clinically relevant in C. jejuni infections. Infection with C. jejuni can result in a wide array of clinical symptoms, including diarrhea, fever, abdominal pain, and vomiting, as well as bloody stool with severe invasive infection [3]. PVir is an ≈37.5-kb plasmid that contains components of a type IV secretion system (T4SS) [15,16] known to be important for the virulence of a number of major bacterial pathogens [17]. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of the pVir plasmid in C. jejuni isolated from clinical specimens in Alberta and the relationship of pVir to the clinical expression of the disease in gastroenteritis
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