title: The interactions of Vibrio vulnificus and the oyster Crassostrea virginica.
abstract: The human bacterial pathogen, Vibrio vulnificus, is found in brackish waters and is concentrated by filter-feeding molluscan shellfish, especially oysters, which inhabit those waters. Ingestion of raw or undercooked oysters containing virulent strains of V. vulnificus can result in rapid septicemia and death in 50 % of victims. This review summarizes the current knowledge of the environmental interactions between these two organisms, including the effects of salinity and temperature on colonization, uptake, and depuration rates of various phenotypes and genotypes of the bacterium, and host-microbe immunological interactions.
authors.affiliation: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Institute of Marine Sciences, 3431 Arendell Street, Morehead City, NC 28557, USA. bafroeli@unc.edu
authors.forename: Brett
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Froelich
authors.forename: James D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Oliver
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D006801:Humans; D010125:Ostreidae / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000502:physiology; D012758:Shellfish / Q000382:microbiology*; D057096:Shellfish Poisoning / Q000382:microbiology*; D012965:Sodium Chloride; D013696:Temperature; D014735:Vibrio Infections / Q000382:microbiology*; D041261:Vibrio vulnificus / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D012965:Sodium Chloride