| Description |
Within the United States alone, Extraintestinal Pathogenic Ecsherichia coli (ExPEC) is responsible for adverse health outcomes that affect millions of people annually. ExPEC is the primary cause of urinary tract infections, which afflict about 50% of women at least once in their lifetime. It is thought that one of the main reservoirs for these infections are within the gut, where ExPEC does not typically cause disease. The mammalian gut utilizes a variety of defensive mechanisms to prevent infection from outside pathogens. Despite effective and complex host responses, ExPEC can colonize the intestinal tract and remain there for extended periods of time. The primary goal of this research is to identify factors that allow for not only successful ExPEC colonization of the gut, but to also note adaptational changes that may enhance ExPEC survival within this complex environment. Two reference ExPEC strains, the cystitis isolate F11 and the pyelonephritis isolate CFT073, were evaluated for their ability to colonize and adapt to the gastrointestinal (GI) tract of mice. Colonization of the gut was quantified by titering bacteria recovered from the feces over the course of 18 days following oral gavage of the indicated strains. Both CFT073 and F11 displayed varying degrees of colonization within the gut. It appears that the selective pressures and stochastic events within the intestinal tract likely contribute to this trend. This is being further investigated by using sequencing and imaging approaches to assess changes in ExPEC genomes and location within the gut over time. |
