Researchers have found the mechanism that one bacterium uses to enter the intestinal cells of the body. This bacterium is the most common cause of food-borne illness in the U.S.
The bacterium, Campylobacter jejuni, is contracted from eating raw or undercooked poultry, most often found in chicken, said Nick Negretti, WSU alumnus and postdoctoral research fellow at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.
C. jejuni is similar to salmonella. People infected with it tend to get severe abdominal cramps and can have a fever, Negretti said.
The researchers have discovered many secreted proteins that come from C. jejuni. One of them is called CiaD, which allows the bacterium to get into intestinal cells, said Michael Konkel, professor in the WSU School of Molecular Biosciences.