Les infections á Campylobacter

Campylobacter is one of the most common agents of bacterial gastroenteritis over the world. The species C. jejuni and C. coli are of particular concern in human health. Both are transmitted by food of animal origin, mainly chicken for C. jejuni and pig for C. coli. After an incubation period of 2-7 days, the illness is characterized by profuse, often bloody diarrhoea, particularly in children, acute abdominal pain and fever. Biological diagnosis of this infection is based on direct examination of stool samples and culture. The most serious post infection complication is the Guillain-Barré syndrome. Treatment with antibiotic for uncomplicated Campylobacter infection is rare, in these particular cases, erythromycin and to a less extend fluoroquinolones are the drugs of choice. During the last two decades considerable progress were accomplished in the knowledge of the pathophysiology of these organisms. Several complete genome sequences were successfully obtained, allowing up-to date strategies to be applied. Several virulence factors have been described including toxins, adhesion factors, flagella, stress survival and glycosylation mechanisms. However, despite numerous efforts, a clear correlation between genomic content and virulence potential of strains is not established to date. This impairment is, at least in part, due to the lack of an animal model, easy to manage and capable to reproduce the human symptoms.