A model of infected burn wounds using Escherichia coli O18:K1:H7 for the study of gram-negative bacteremia and sepsis.
A difficulty that has emerged in the development and preclinical evaluation of adjuvant therapies for gram-negative sepsis is the lack of easily studied animal models that closely mimic human infection. An objective of this study was to adapt a previously described model of infection in burned mice to rats with a defined bacterial strain of Escherichia coli. Challenge with two colonies of live E. coli O18:K1:H7 bacteria into an 8% full-thickness burn of the dorsal skin surface of rats produced predictable bacteremia at 24 to 48 h and 80 to 100% mortality at 3 to 4 days. E. coli O18:K1:H7 was approximately 10-million-fold more virulent than several other gram-negative bacterial strains. The model should be a useful tool in studying the pathogenicity of burn wound infections and in evaluating the efficacy of novel adjuvant therapies for gram-negative sepsis.
Busch
N A
NA
Center for Engineering in Medicine and Surgical Services, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02114, USA.
Zanzot
E M
EM
Loiselle
P M
PM
Carter
E A
EA
Allaire
J E
JE
Yarmush
M L
ML
Warren
H S
HS
D000818:Animals; D016470:Bacteremia / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000401:mortality; D002056:Burns / Q000150:complications* / Q000401:mortality; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004927:Escherichia coli Infections / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000401:mortality; D016905:Gram-Negative Bacterial Infections / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000401:mortality; D008297:Male; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D014946:Wound Infection / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000401:mortality