Recent advances in understanding Listeria monocytogenes infection: the importance of subcellular and physiological context

Abstract

<ns4:p>The bacterial pathogen<ns4:italic> Listeria monocytogenes</ns4:italic> (<ns4:italic>Lm</ns4:italic>) is the causative agent of listeriosis, a rare but fatal foodborne disease. During infection, <ns4:italic>Lm</ns4:italic> can traverse several host barriers and enter the cytosol of a variety of cell types. Thus, consideration of the extracellular and intracellular niches of <ns4:italic>Lm</ns4:italic> is critical for understanding the infection process. Here, we review advances in our understanding of <ns4:italic>Lm</ns4:italic> infection and highlight how the interactions between the host and the pathogen are context dependent. We discuss discoveries of how <ns4:italic>Lm</ns4:italic> senses entry into the host cell cytosol. We present findings concerning how the nature of the various cytoskeleton components subverted by <ns4:italic>Lm</ns4:italic> changes depending on both the stage of infection and the subcellular context. We present discoveries of critical components required for <ns4:italic>Lm</ns4:italic> traversal of physiological barriers. Interactions between the host gut microbiota and <ns4:italic>Lm</ns4:italic> will be briefly discussed. Finally, the importance of <ns4:italic>Lm</ns4:italic> biodiversity and post-genomics approaches as a promising way to discover novel virulence factors will be highlighted.</ns4:p>