Campylobacter DNA is present in circulating myelomonocytic cells of healthy persons and in persons with Guillain-Barré syndrome

Ildiko Van Rhijn, Nancy M.C. Bleumink-Pluym, Jos P.M. Van Putten, Leonard H. Van den Berg

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

10 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Campylobacter jejuni is the prime cause of foodborne bacterial gastroenteritis. An important complication of C. jejuni enteritis is Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS), an immune-mediated disorder of the peripheral nerve. The presence of C. jejuni DNA in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) of patients with GBS, patients with C. jejuni enteritis, and healthy subjects was studied. Two target genes, the flagellin and the ceuE genes, were used for polymerase chain reaction (PCR) identification of Campylobacter species in DNA extracted from PBMC. Approximately 30% of the healthy subjects and 50% of the patients with GBS had PBMC containing C. jejuni DNA as verified by Southern blot analysis or sequencing of the PCR products. Cell sorting revealed that Campylobacter DNA was present in CD14+ and CD33+ populations, indicating that cells from the myelomonocytic lineage are the Campylobacter DNA-carrying cells. These findings show that Campylobacter DNA is present in blood cells of healthy humans, although viable bacteria could not be demonstrated.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)262-265
Number of pages4
JournalJournal of Infectious Diseases
Volume185
Issue number2
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 15 Jan 2002

Keywords

  • Econometric and Statistical Methods: General
  • Geneeskunde (GENK)
  • Geneeskunde(GENK)
  • Medical sciences
  • Bescherming en bevordering van de menselijke gezondheid

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