Salmonella Typhimurium is one of the most common causes of
food-borne disease in the United States and often causes a self-limiting
gastrointestinal (GI) infection. However, in people with impaired
immune responses, Salmonella Typhimurium can cause severe
systemic infections, spreading through the blood to other organs.
In
some cases, the bacteria spread to the CNS, causing meningitis. People
at risk include the very young and the elderly, people with advanced
HIV/AIDS, and those with sickle cell disease. Salmonella
meningitis, which was rare globally, is now one of the most common forms
of bacterial meningitis in parts of Africa and has a high case fatality
rate.
Induced Hypothermia Not Beneficial for Bacterial Meningitis Patients
Therapeutic hypothermia, or lowering of body temperature, among adult patients with severe bacterial meningitis was not found to be beneficial and could instead be harmful, a new study reveals.
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‘The new mouse model can be used to determine how Salmonella Typhimurium infects and causes damage in the brain. Researchers will also use it for studying potential treatments.’
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National Institutes of Health (NIH) scientists have established in mice a way to study potentially life-threatening meningitis caused by Salmonella. Bacterial meningitis happens when bacteria infect the central nervous system (CNS), causing a serious disease that can be life-threatening and difficult to diagnose and treat. Patients who survive often have permanent brain damage.
Researchers at NIH's National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) infected mice orally with Salmonella Typhimurium to mimic food-borne infection. They found that Salmonella moved from the GI tract to the blood and then to the brain, resulting in meningitis. Damage observed in the brains of Salmonella-infected mice resembled that observed with human meningitis, providing a new model for investigators to study human disease.
![Noninvasive Bacterial Meningitis Test Based on Ultrasound May End Repeated Spinal Taps]( "Noninvasive Bacterial Meningitis Test Based on Ultrasound May End Repeated Spinal Taps")
The special ultrasound device may very well make spinal taps obsolete when evaluating small children for bacterial meningitis.
Collaborators include Salmonella and neuroimmunology experts at NIAID's Rocky Mountain Laboratories and biologists at the University of Colorado. They plan to use the model to determine how Salmonella Typhimurium infects and causes damage in the brain, including which immune cells are involved. They also will use the model to study potential treatments to prevent Salmonella from gaining access to the CNS or limiting the damage during meningitis.
Source: Eurekalert
Noninvasive Bacterial Meningitis Test Based on Ultrasound May End Repeated Spinal Taps
The special ultrasound device may very well make spinal taps obsolete when evaluating small children for bacterial meningitis.
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Collaborators include Salmonella and neuroimmunology experts at NIAID's Rocky Mountain Laboratories and biologists at the University of Colorado. They plan to use the model to determine how Salmonella Typhimurium infects and causes damage in the brain, including which immune cells are involved. They also will use the model to study potential treatments to prevent Salmonella from gaining access to the CNS or limiting the damage during meningitis.
Source: Eurekalert
Instant Immune Booster Improves Outcome of Bacterial Meningitis, Pneumonia
Research lead Professor Wilhelm Schwaeble explained: I am really excited about this landmark discovery. We demonstrate that boosting the innate immune system can have a significant impact on the body's ability to defend itself against life-threatening infections.
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 Universal Hib Vaccination Has Reduced Burden of Bacterial MeningitisThe incidence of Hib disease in young children has dramatically reduced over the past 20 years thanks to vaccination against Haemophilus influenzae type b, or Hib. | Advertisement
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