Campylobacter Strategies for Colonizing the Host Gastrointestinal Tract
Annika Flint, James Butcher and Alain Stintzi
from: Campylobacter Ecology and Evolution (Edited by: Samuel K. Sheppard). Caister Academic Press, U.K. (2014)
Abstract
Colonizing the gastrointestinal tract is fraught with multiple challenges for incoming bacteria. These microbes must not only evade the host immune systems and the harsh environmental conditions of the gastrointestinal tract, but also out-compete the native microbiota. Campylobacter jejuni is an efficient colonizer of both avian and mammalian hosts. In both these environments, C. jejuni is able to scavenge and metabolize the nutrients found within the mucus layer and out-compete commensal microbes. To accomplish this feat, C. jejuni preferentially metabolizes specific constituents within the mucus layer of the intestine as growth substrates, including key amino acids and fucose. This chapter provides an overview of the pathways and mechanisms of C. jejuni important for adaptation, survival and growth within the gastrointestinal tract read more ...
