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Questions and Answers
What environment do viable bacteria pass through after ingesting contaminated food or water?
What structures do bacteria use to attach and colonize in the intestine?
Where do pathogens prefer to colonize in the intestine?
Why do pathogens attach to the epithelial surface?
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What is the result of a pathogen losing its ability to adhere to the gut wall?
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What is the effect of enterotoxin on the gut?
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Where do pathogens usually attach and colonize in the intestine?
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Study Notes
Infection Process
- Viable bacteria pass through the acidic stomach environment and move to the intestine after ingestion of food or water.
- Bacteria attach and colonize in the intestine using adhesins, fimbriae (pili), colonization factor antigens (CFA), curli, and flagella.
- Biofilm formation may aid in pathogen colonization in the intestinal tissues.
Colonization Site
- The small intestine is the principal site for colonization, where competition from the endogenous microflora is less intense.
- The pathogen attaches to and colonizes the epithelial surface to prevent removal by the flushing action of the high flow rates in this section of the gut.
Adhesion Mechanism
- Adhesins, molecules associated with fimbriae on the bacterial cell surface, recognize and attach to specific receptor sites on the microvilli.
- Loss of adhesion ability dramatically reduces a pathogen's virulence.
Establishment of Infection
- Once attached, the pathogen produces a protein enterotoxin, which acts locally in the gut.
- Enterotoxin changes the flow of electrolytes and water across the mucosa from one of absorption to secretion.
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Description
This quiz covers the process of bacterial infection and colonization in the human body, including the role of adhesins, fimbriae, and flagella in attaching and colonizing the intestinal tissues.
