Module Assessment
Objectives and Learning Outcomes
• Have detailed knowledge of the pathogen Campylobacter jejuni
• Have detailed knowledge of the disease campylobacteriosis caused by this pathogen
• Appreciate the global impact of this disease
• Understand the characterisation of this species investigating outbreaks and infections
Campylobacteriosis
Campylobacter jejuni is a frequent cause of bacterial enteritis in industrialised countries but is also a major cause of childhood illness in the developing world. Although deaths due to campylobacteriosis are rare, the public health issues are severe due to the high incidence of infections. The consumption of contaminated poultry or water are the major sources of infection as Campylobacters inhabit, asymptomatically, in the intestinal tract of wild birds and domesticated animals.
C. jejuni can express multiple virulence mechanisms and can cause disease with possible further complications but various strategies can be employed to control human infection including measures to reduce the contamination of food production animals and safe food handling practices.
The World Health Organisation estimates that 1% of the population of Western Europe are infected with C. jejuni each year. The reported incidence varies widely from country to country primarily due to differences in approach to laboratory culture and reporting practices. Generally, worldwide, the incidence of rates increased during the 1980s as isolation techniques were refined. There seems to be a more gradual increase throughout the 1990s, which seems to have peaked in most countries in the early 200s and in some countries a subsequent decline. In the European Community the overall incidence of campylobacteriosis is 51.6 cases per 100.000 persons per year
The majority of reported C. jejuni cases are sporadic infections involving individuals or small family groups. Case-control studies have identified several risk factors associated with sporadic cases including the consumption of chicken in various forms; the consumption of barbequed or undercooked meat; the consumption of salad vegetables; drinking unpasteurised milk; drinking untreated water; swimming in natural surface water and foreign travel. C. jejuni outbreaks (affecting more than one household) are rarely recognised possibly attributed to a number of reasons including that the bacterium does not survive well outside the host and is unable to multiply in food or to grow below 30oC, supporting the evidence that person to person transmission is low.
Coursework requirements
Although Campylobacter infections are generally mild, complications can include reactive arthritis neurological disorders such as Guillain-Barré syndrome, a disorder in which the body’s immune system attacks part of the peripheral nervous system and also reactive arthritis.
Currently, there are no vaccines approved by any global regulatory authority to prevent C. jejuni associated infections due to a variety of reasons (Riddle and Guerry, 2016).
You are asked to prepare a graphical abstract describing “Vaccine development for Campylobacter jejuni infection.”
A graphical abstract is a single, concise, pictorial and visual summary of the main findings of the article which captures the content of the subject for readers at a single glance.
You will have 1h to support the information detailed in the graphical abstract and answer questions on the problems associated with vaccine development for C. jejuni online.
The graphical abstract should include information on the potential vaccine candidates for protection against C. jejuni infection in humans (50% of the marks).
The assessment paper will include questions on the problems associated with vaccine development for protection against C. jejuni infection (40% of the marks). Why?
Please prepare your reference list in advance; this should be word-processed with your name clearly stated. Please upload this in with your graphical abstract (10% of the mark allocation).
References or sources of information
These are suggested references; you are expected to access additional references relevant to the area of study.
Dasti J, et al. (2010) Campylobacter jejuni: A brief overview on pathogenicity-associated factors and disease-mediating mechanisms. International Journal of Medical Microbiology, 300:205-211.
Poly F, Noll A, Riddle M. and Porter C. (2019) Update on Campylobacter vaccine development/ Human vaccines and Immunotherapeutics. 15 (6): 1389-1400.
Riddle M. and Guerry P. (2016) Status of vaccine research and development for Campylobacter jejuni. Vaccine. 34: 2903-2906.
Marking Scheme for coursework:
Name:
Guidelines for marking MARK
JUSTIFICATION
Visual appearance
Is the layout of the graphical abstract effective and logical?
Is the use of colour appropriate?
Are the sizes of images, text appropriate? 20
Scientific content
Does the graphical abstract include material relevant to topic?
Is the background to the topic clearly explained?
30
Class Assessment 40
References 10
Total
100%