Francisella

• Francisella tularensis, the causative agent of tularaemia, is a zoonotic intracellular pathogen that can be found in a very large number of species ranging from large mammals and vertebrates to invertebrates, arthropods and amoebas. Disease in humans often occurs in parallel with tularaemia in wild animals. Human infection can occur through aerosolization, direct contact with infected animals via arthropod vectors like ticks, mosquitos and biting flies. F. tularensis subspecies tularensis (type A) is one of the most infectious bacteria known and inhalation of as few as ten organisms can be sufficient to establish an infection in humans that if left untreated could be fatal. The success of F. tularensis as a pathogen lies in its unique ability to adapt a lifestyle as an intracellular pathogen and to very timely subvert host defences both at extracellular and intracellular levels. Key events in the infection process are the ability to rapidly escape the phagosome after uptake by phagocytic cells and the ability to replicate to high levels inside the host cells without evoking a host inflammatory response.

Subject headings

MEDICIN OCH HÄLSOVETENSKAP  -- Medicinska och farmaceutiska grundvetenskaper -- Mikrobiologi inom det medicinska området (hsv//swe)

MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES  -- Basic Medicine -- Microbiology in the medical area (hsv//eng)

Keyword

Diagnosis

Ecology

Epidemiology

Francisella tularensis

Immunity

Symptoms

Taxonomy

Therapy

Tularaemia

Vaccine

Publication and Content Type

ref (subject category)

kap (subject category)