To study the interaction between enteric pathogens that are linked to contamination of fresh produce and ciliated protozoa that are commonly isolated from crop production environments.
Approach:
The interaction will be studied by microarray analysis of the gene expression profile in Salmonella enterica and E. coli O157:H7 cells while they reside in the vacuoles of the protozoan Tetrahymena. The effect of the interactions between the two organisms on the survival of the pathogens will be assessed by population dynamics studies on leafy vegetables.