Dose-Response to Vibrio Species

The goal of this proposal is to determine the dose of V. cholerae non O1 needed to colonize and/or cause illness in volunteers when ingested in raw oysters. Previously uncontaminated oysters will be infected with non O1 V. cholerae at the Columbus Center. Human dose-response to Vibrios will be correlated with data from animal models; doses of non-O1 V. cholerae needed to cause colonization/illness in rabbits and mice after oral inoculation will be established and compared with V. parahaemolyticus and V. vulnificus in animals. Impact of host and strain differences on dose-response relationships will be assessed.