User:Infinity212/Vibrio

Cholera
"Cholera"

A common sign of Vibrio infection is cholera. Cholera primarily presents with rapid water loss by watery diarrhea. Other symptoms include vomiting and muscle cramps. Water loss can lead to dehydration which can be mild to moderate to severe. Moderate to severe dehydration requires immediate treatment. V. cholerae is the most common pathogen that causes cholera. The gold standard for detecting cholera is through cultures of stool samples or rectal swabs. Identification is then done through microscopy or by agglutination of antibodies. Cultures are done in thiosulfate citrate bile-salts sucrose agar. V cholerae will form yellow colonies.

Vibriosis
Vibriosis is a sign of a more severe Vibrio infection. Common causes of vibriosis include consumption of raw or undercooked seafood, primarily oysters, or wound exposure to sea water. The majority of V. parahemolyticus infections can be self-limiting and symptoms include diarrhea, nausea, headaches, fever and chills. V. vulnificus can lead to a more serious disease, particularly in wound infection which can turn into necrotizing fasciitis. V. parahaemolyticus is the most common pathogen in vibriosis however, V. vulnificus is more common in people who have certain risk factors like older age, liver disease or diabetes mellitus. Like all vibrio diagnosis, vibriosis can also be determined in stool cultures. V. parahemolyticus and V. vulnificus will form green colonies.

Treatment
Medical care depends on the clinical presentation and the presence of underlying medical conditions.

Vibrio Cholera
In most cases of Vibrio cholera is self-limiting in most patients and medical therapy may not be required. A common supportive treatment is oral fluid replacement. Patients who cannot tolerate oral fluid replacement may require intravenous fluid therapy.

Although most Vibrio species are sensitive to antibiotics such as doxycycline or ciprofloxacin, antibiotic therapy does not shorten the course of the illness or the duration of pathogen excretion. However, if the patient is ill, has a high fever or an underlying medical condition, oral antibiotic therapy with doxycycline or ciprofloxacin can be initiated.

Cholera
The most effective method to prevent cholera is the improvement of water and food safety. This includes the sanitation of water, proper preparation of food and community awareness of outbreaks. Prevention has been most effective in countries where cholera is endemic.

Another method is cholera vaccines. Examples of cholera vaccines include Dukoral and Vaxchora.

Vibriosis
Prevention of vibriosis is mostly from food processing. Food items, mostly seafood, that commonly contain vibrio organisms are regularly controlled. Analysis of the water that seafood is fished or farmed from to determine microorganism content. Food processing methods like pasteurization and high pressure are used to eliminate microorganisms and pathogens.

Flagella
"Flagella"

Structure
Typical bacterial flagellum structure contains three components: the basal body, the hook and the filament. Like typical bacteria, Vibrio spp, have these three components. In Vibrio spp, most have one flagella located on one pole of the bacterium. Another difference is the gradient used to power the flagella motor is sodium driven rather than proton driven. The flagellum is also surrounded by a sheath extending from the membrane. The purpose of this sheath has yet to be determined.

Affect on Virulence
Motility is very important for Vibrio spp for infection. Research has shown that a variety of Vibrios mutants that are defective in flagella synthesis or non-motile are defective in infection. Loss of motility in Vibrio has shown impaired colonization and adherence to host's intestines.