Yersinia pseudotuberculosis is a Gram-negative pathogen1 that can cause foodborne pseudotuberculosis. Yersinia pseudotuberculosis causes food-borne outbreaks, often in children in day-care centers and schools, primarily in the northern hemisphere (e.g., Northern Europe, Russia, and Japan). Transmission of this zoonotic pathogen of wild and domestic mammals (particularly rodents) and birds occurs by ingestion of fecal contaminated drinking water or food, or through direct contact with infected animals. Clinical illness is characterized by fever and acute abdominal pain caused by mesenteric lymphadenitis that is often clinically indistinguishable from acute appendicitis. Postinfectious complications include erythema nodosum and reactive arthritis. The illness is often self-limited.
Key laboratories studying various aspects of foodborne Pseudotuberculosis in the US and Canada include:
Canada
Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario
USA
Center for Infectious Diseases and Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, SUNY Stony Brook, Stony Brook, New YorkDepartment of Pathobiology and Center for Computational Epidemiology, Bioinformatics and Risk Analysis, College of Veterinary Medicine, Nursing and Allied Health, Tuskegee University, Alabama
Division of Microbiology, National Center for Toxicological Research/FDA, Jefferson, Arkansas 72079
Microbial Food Safety Research Unit, Eastern Regional Research Center, Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania
North Atlantic Area, Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania
Key laboratories studying various aspects of foodborne Pseudotuberculosis in Europe include:
Belgium
Department of Veterinary Public Health and Food Safety, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ghent University, Merelbeke
Finland
Department of Bacteriology and Immunology, Infection Biology Research Program, Haartman Institute, University of Helsinki, Helsinki
Department of Food and Veterinary Control, Finnish Food Safety Authority, Helsinki
Department of Food Hygiene and Environmental Health, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki
Department of Medical Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Institute of Biomedicine, University of Turku, Turku
Enteric Bacteria Laboratory, National Public Health Institute, Helsinki
Environmental and Food Research Laboratory, TavastLab, Ha¨meenlinna
Environmental and Food Research Laboratory (TavastLab), Municipal Joint Union for Public Health in Hämeenlinna Region, Hämeenlinna
Helsinki University Central Hospital Laboratory Diagnostics, Helsinki
Laboratory of Enteric Pathogens, National Public Health Institute, National Veterinary and Food Research Institute, Helsinki
Risk Assessment Unit, Finnish Food Safety Authority Evira, Mustialankatu
Germany
Abt. Mikrobielle Pathogenität, Helmholtz Zentrum für Infektionsforschung, 38124 Braunschweig
Division of Structural Biochemistry, Research Center Borstel, Borstel
Institute of Food Hygiene, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, LMU Munich, Munich
Institut für Mikrobiologie, Technische Universität Braunschweig, 38106 Braunschweig
Research Center Borstel, Leibniz Center for Medicine and Biosciences, Borstel
Italy
Department of Veterinary Public Health and Animal Pathology, Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, Bologna
Latvia
Institute of Food and Environmental Hygiene, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Latvia University of Agriculture, K. Helman¸a iela 8, LV-3004, Jelgava
Russia
N.D. Zelinsky Institute of Organic Chemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow
State Research Center for Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology, Obolensk, Moscow Region
Spain
Laboratory Microbial Pathogenesis, Fundación Caubet-CIMERA Illes Balears and Consejo Superior Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Bunyola
Sweden
Department of Medical Countermeasures, Swedish Defense Research Agency, Division of NBC-Defense, SE-901 82 Umeå
Department of Molecular Biology and Umeå Center for Microbial Research, Umeå University, SE-901 87 Umeå
Research and Development Department, National Food Administration, Uppsala
Umeå Center for Microbial Research, Umeå University, SE-901 87 Umeå
United Kingdom
Institute of Infection, Immunity and Inflammation, Centre for Biomolecular Sciences, University of Nottingham, Nottingham NG7 2UH
Institute of Genetics, Queens Medical Centre, University of Nottingham, Nottingham NG7 2UH
Key laboratories studying various aspects of foodborne Pseudotuberculosis in South and Latin America include:
Key laboratories studying various aspects of foodborne Pseudotuberculosis in Asia and Australia include:
Australia
Division of Microbiology, School of Molecular Bioscience, University of Sydney, Sydney 2006
Japan
Shimane Prefectural Institute of Public Health and Environment Science, Izumo 690-0122
Food Hygiene Laboratory, National Food Research Institute, Tsukuba 305-8642
Food Safety Laboratory, Faculty of Fisheries Sciences, Hokkaido University, Hakodate 041-8611
Additional resources on Yersinia pseudotuberculosis:
A number of key sources on Yersinia pseudotuberculosis are available:
http://new.paho.org/hq/dmdocuments/2010/ZoonosesVol-1.pdf
Schiemann, D.A. Yersinia enterocolitica and Yersinia pseudotuberculosis. In: Doyle, M.P., ed. Foodborne Bacterial Pathogens. New York: Marcel Dekker; 1989.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/Taxonomy/Browser/wwwtax.cgi?name=Yersinia%20pseudotuberculosis
http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/226871-overview
References
1http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yersinia_pseudotuberculosishttp://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21192848
If you want to edit or add to this entry please contact Tom Malley at tjm255@cornell.edu