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Virulence Traits in the Cronobacter Genus

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Foodborne Pathogens

Part of the book series: Food Microbiology and Food Safety ((PRACT))

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Abstract

Members of the Cronobacter genus are opportunistic pathogens within the bacterial family Enterobacteriaceae. They are associated with rare and sporadic infections in adults and associated with severe life threatening outbreaks of necrotizing enterocolitis, as well as causing meningitis and sepsis in neonates and infants. The organism is most commonly known for its infections of highly susceptible neonates through the consumption of contaminated reconstituted powdered infant formula; however, most infections are in the adult population and, therefore, wider sources of exposure and mechanisms of infection need to be better elucidated. This chapter will review the array of Cronobacter’s virulence traits, which may aid the organisms’ pathogenicity. In addition, environmental fitness will also be considered, as this may be crucial to understanding the prevalence of Cronobacter pathovars with particular infections in specific age groups.

Cronobacter has an array of virulence factors that facilitate tissue adhesion, invasion, and host cell injury. The outer membrane protein A (OmpA), is one such virulence marker, which also has importance in neonatal meningitic E. coli pathogenesis. Various plasmid-associated genes, such as those for filamentous hemagglutinin (fhaBC), Cronobacter plasminogen activator (cpa), as well as chromosomal genes responsible for iron acquisition (eitCBAD) and iucABD/iutA) and sialic acid utilization (nanAKT) have been reported. The possession of these virulence factors alone does not necessarily define a Cronobacter strain as being virulent, as there is also the aspect of environmental fitness. Physiological properties, such as biofilm formation and resistance to desiccation, may also contribute to the incidence of infection, as they increase its persistence in the environment and, hence, increase exposure. Capsular profiling has revealed an association between strains producing specific K-antigen, colanic acid and cellulose with neonatal meningitis, which could be linked to both host immune evasion as well as environmental survival. Recently, the use of whole genome comparative analysis with >200 strains has revealed the variation in the prevalence of virulence traits across the genus. In parallel is the recent recognition of specific pathovars, being linked to clonal lineages; for example, C. sakazakii CC4 with neonatal meningitis. These associations should lead to future virulence studies with well-chosen genetically characterized strains.

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Abbreviations

CC:

Clonal complex

CDC:

U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

CNS:

Central nervous system

FAO-WHO:

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations-World Health Organization

ICMSF:

International Commission on Microbiological Specifications for Foods

MLSA:

Multilocus sequence analysis

MLST:

Multilocus sequence typing

NEC:

Necrotizing enterocolitis

NICU:

Neonatal intensive care units

PFGE:

Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis

PIF:

Powdered infant formula

ST:

Sequence type

UTI:

Urinary tract infection

WHO:

World Health Organization

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Acknowledgments

The work was in part funded by King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences and the Saudi Arabian Cultural Bureau in London.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Clinical Laboratory Sciences, College of Applied Medical Sciences, King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences, PO Box 22490, MC 3129, Riyadh, 11481, Saudi Arabia

    F. S. Almajed

  2. Pathogen Research Group, School of Science and Technology, Nottingham Trent University, Clifton Lane, Nottingham, UK, NG11 8NS

    S. Forsythe

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  1. F. S. Almajed
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  2. S. Forsythe
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Correspondence to F. S. Almajed .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. U. S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Eastern Regional Research, Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania, USA

    Joshua B. Gurtler

  2. University of Georgia, Center of Food Safety, Griffin, Georgia, USA

    Michael P. Doyle

  3. Kornacki Microbiology Solutions, Inc., Madison, Wisconsin, USA

    Jeffrey L. Kornacki

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Almajed, F.S., Forsythe, S. (2017). Virulence Traits in the Cronobacter Genus. In: Gurtler, J., Doyle, M., Kornacki, J. (eds) Foodborne Pathogens. Food Microbiology and Food Safety(). Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-56836-2_5

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