This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowReprints and Permissions
Right arrow Copyright Information
Right arrow Books from ASM Press
Right arrow MicrobeWorld
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Stein, A.
Right arrow Articles by Raoult, D.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Stein, A.
Right arrow Articles by Raoult, D.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Infection and Immunity, April 2005, p. 2469-2477, Vol. 73, No. 4
0019-9567/05/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/IAI.73.4.2469-2477.2005

Q Fever Pneumonia: Virulence of Coxiella burnetii Pathovars in a Murine Model of Aerosol Infection

Andreas Stein,1 Céline Louveau,2 Hubert Lepidi,1 Fanny Ricci,3 Pascal Baylac,2 Bernard Davoust,4 and Didier Raoult1*

Unité des Rickettsies, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Unité Mixte de Recherche 6020, Institut Fédératif de Recherche 48, Faculté de Médecine, Université de la Méditerranée, Marseille,1 Centre d'Etudes du Bouchet, Vert le Petit,2 Ecole d'Application du Service de Santé des Armées,3 Direction du Service de Santé en Région Sud-Est, Lyon Armées, Lyon, France4

Received 28 May 2004/ Returned for modification 26 July 2004/ Accepted 11 November 2004

Q fever is a worldwide zoonosis caused by Coxiella burnetii, a strictly intracellular bacterium that is a potential bioweapon. Humans usually acquires Q fever after inhalation of dust infected by subclinical animals. We used an aerosol exposure apparatus to challenge immunocompetent (BALB/c) and severe combined immunodeficient (SCID) mice with two different strains (strain Nine Mile and strain Q 212) of C. burnetii at two different inocula. Pathological lesions and dissemination of the bacteria were related to the size of the inoculum. SCID mice showed major pulmonary lesions, whereas similarly infected BALB/c mice were more able to eliminate the bacteria. Pathological differences were found between the strains, with Nine Mile showing more severe histological lesions and quantified spread of bacteria. Our animal model could provide a new tool for the study of acute Q fever pneumonia, the development of Q fever in immunodeficient hosts, and the differentiation of pathogenicity among C. burnetii isolates.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Unité des Rickettsies, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, UMR 6020, IFR 48, Faculté de Médecine, Université de la Méditerranée, 27 Boulevard Jean Moulin, 13385 Marseille Cedex 05, France. Phone: (33) 491-38-5517. Fax: (33) 41-830-390. E-mail: Didier.Raoult{at}medecine.univ-mrs.fr.

Editor: S. H. E. Kaufmann

Infection and Immunity, April 2005, p. 2469-2477, Vol. 73, No. 4
0019-9567/05/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/IAI.73.4.2469-2477.2005




This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Voth, D. E., Howe, D., Beare, P. A., Vogel, J. P., Unsworth, N., Samuel, J. E., Heinzen, R. A. (2009). The Coxiella burnetii Ankyrin Repeat Domain-Containing Protein Family Is Heterogeneous, with C-Terminal Truncations That Influence Dot/Icm-Mediated Secretion. J. Bacteriol. 191: 4232-4242 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Beare, P. A., Unsworth, N., Andoh, M., Voth, D. E., Omsland, A., Gilk, S. D., Williams, K. P., Sobral, B. W., Kupko, J. J. III, Porcella, S. F., Samuel, J. E., Heinzen, R. A. (2009). Comparative Genomics Reveal Extensive Transposon-Mediated Genomic Plasticity and Diversity among Potential Effector Proteins within the Genus Coxiella. Infect. Immun. 77: 642-656 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Brumell, J. H., Scidmore, M. A. (2007). Manipulation of Rab GTPase Function by Intracellular Bacterial Pathogens. Microbiol. Mol. Biol. Rev. 71: 636-652 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Ochoa-Reparaz, J., Sentissi, J., Trunkle, T., Riccardi, C., Pascual, D. W. (2007). Attenuated Coxiella burnetii Phase II Causes a Febrile Response in Gamma Interferon Knockout and Toll-Like Receptor 2 Knockout Mice and Protects against Reinfection. Infect. Immun. 75: 5845-5858 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Voth, D. E., Howe, D., Heinzen, R. A. (2007). Coxiella burnetii Inhibits Apoptosis in Human THP-1 Cells and Monkey Primary Alveolar Macrophages. Infect. Immun. 75: 4263-4271 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Russell-Lodrigue, K. E., Zhang, G. Q., McMurray, D. N., Samuel, J. E. (2006). Clinical and pathologic changes in a Guinea pig aerosol challenge model of acute q Fever.. Infect. Immun. 74: 6085-6091 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Beare, P. A., Samuel, J. E., Howe, D., Virtaneva, K., Porcella, S. F., Heinzen, R. A. (2006). Genetic Diversity of the Q Fever Agent, Coxiella burnetii, Assessed by Microarray-Based Whole-Genome Comparisons.. J. Bacteriol. 188: 2309-2324 [Abstract] [Full Text]  


Copyright © 2009 by the American Society for Microbiology.   For an alternate route to Journals.ASM.org, visit: http://intl-journals.asm.org | More Info»