Motility of Campylobacter jejuni in a Viscous Environment: Comparison with Conventional Rod-shaped Bacteria

Abstract

The motility of four strains of Campylobacter jejuni in solutions of varying viscosity was measured and compared to that of a number of conventional rod-shaped bacteria (CRSB). All the bacteria tested showed an initial increase in velocity in the low viscosity solutions--between 1 and 3 centipoise (1 P = 0.1 Pa s). However, only the campylobacters were actively motile in highly viscous solutions with velocities ranging from 60 to 100 micron s-1. All strains of C. jejuni tested showed three separate peaks of motility as the viscosity of the solution was increased. A higher proportion of C. jejuni cells exhibited longer path lengths when the viscosity of the surrounding medium was increased from 1.4 to 57 cP. The findings of the study suggest that C. jejuni has a motility suited to movement in a viscous environment, and that this ability might provide the organism with an ecological advantage when in intestinal mucus. It is proposed that the mechanism of motility changes depending on the viscosity of the supporting environment.

Diverse high-torque bacterial flagellar motors assemble wider stator rings using a conserved protein scaffold

“…On the other hand, the e-proteobacteria and spirochetes, many of which thrive exclusively in association with a host, have evolved characteristically rapid and powerful swimming capabilities that enable them to bore through mucous layers coating epithelial cells or between tissues. Indeed, the e-proteobacteria Campylobacter jejuni and Helicobacter pylori are capable of continued swimming in highviscosity media that immobilize E. coli or Vibrio cells (4)(5)(6), and similar behavior is observed for spirochetes (7,8).…”

Roles for motility in bacterial–host interactions

“…These bacteria exhibit motility in highly viscous solutions that immobilize rod-shaped bacteria with peritrichous flagella (i.e. E. coli and Salmonella enteritidis; Ferrero and Lee, 1988). Two flagellin genes, flaA and flaB, have been identified in all species and strains examined (Guerry et al, 1992).…”

Campylobacterbacteremia: A rare and under-reported event?

“…In fact, the importance of the flagella in Campylobacter virulence has been highlighted in many studies, including those using both in vivo animal models and in vitro models based on cell culture systems [106][107][108]. Further, Konkel et al clearly demonstrated that functional flagella are required for the secretion of important Campylobacter virulence factors that are required to establish a maximal invasion of INT 407 intestinal epithelial cells.…”

“…Further, Konkel et al clearly demonstrated that functional flagella are required for the secretion of important Campylobacter virulence factors that are required to establish a maximal invasion of INT 407 intestinal epithelial cells. With particular respect to Campylobacter-related bacteremia, it is hypothesized that the Campylobacter flagella provides motility, enabling the bacterium to traverse through the gastrointestinal mucus layer and reach the epithelium of the intestine ready for translocation into the blood stream [107].…”