Vibrio vulnificus

Vibrio vulnificus is a form of bacteria that can make people ill, as when eating bad clams or oysters, and more in people with a liver disease. Vibrio vulnificus is a species of Gram-negative, motile, curved rod-shaped (bacillus), pathogenic bacteria of the genus Vibrio. Present in marine environments such as estuaries, brackish ponds, or coastal areas, V. vulnificus is related to V. cholerae, as a bacteria which can give people cholera.

Infection with V. vulnificus leads to rapidly expanding cellulitis or sepsis. It was first isolated as a source of disease in 1976. The capsule, made of  polysaccharides, is thought to protect against phagocytosis. The observed connection of the infection with liver disease (associated with increased serum iron) might be due to the capability of more virulent strains to capture iron bound to transferrin.Oxford Handbook of Infect Dis and Microbiol, 2009.

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Category:Diseases caused by bacteria