Poultry handling-related stress alters membrane composition, extracellular vesicle production, survival, and virulence in Campylobacter jejuni Bf
Abstract
We investigated the adaptation of the aerotolerant Campylobacter jejuni Bf strain to conditions mimicking the poultry slaughter process. We showed that C. jejuni Bf survives and actively multiplies under combined thermal and oxidative stress. Stress exposure induces cell rounding, loss of motility, remodeling of membrane composition, decreased membrane fluidity, and metabolic reprogramming with increased intracellular ATP levels. While maintaining the lipid composition of its plasma membrane, C. jejuni modulates the lipid composition of its extracellular vesicles when exposed to stress. Notably, stressed C. jejuni cells release extracellular vesicles with increased toxicity toward the epithelial barrier of Caco-2 cells, potentially facilitating invasion of the gut epithelium. IMPORTANCE Campylobacter infections are one of the leading causes of foodborne gastroenteritis worldwide. Campylobacter readily enters the food chain and is transmitted to humans, primarily through the consumption of contaminated poultry meat. The high prevalence of aerotolerant human Campylobacter jejuni isolates suggests a correlation between their ability to survive under aerobic conditions, virulence, and resistance to harsh stress conditions. However, the underlying mechanism remains unclear. Our results show that C. jejuni extracellular vesicles are part of a survival strategy that links environmental adaptation with pathogenicity.
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BibTeX
@article{maletvillemagne2026poultry,
title = {{Poultry handling-related stress alters membrane composition, extracellular vesicle production, survival, and virulence in Campylobacter jejuni Bf}},
author = {Jeanne Malet-Villemagne and Rochelle d'Mello and Yingxi Li and Zoran Minic and Karine Gloux and Florence Dubois-Brissonnet and Bastien Prost and Audrey Solgadi and Christine Péchoux and Vlad Costache and Marianne De Paepe and Zhu Zhang and Gilles Tessier and Jasmina Vidic},
journal = {Applied and Environmental Microbiology},
year = {2026},
month = aug,
doi = {10.1128/aem.01265-26},
url = {https://hal.inrae.fr/hal-05778555v1},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Poultry handling-related stress alters membrane composition, extracellular vesicle production, survival, and virulence in Campylobacter jejuni Bf
AU - Jeanne Malet-Villemagne
AU - Rochelle d'Mello
AU - Yingxi Li
AU - Zoran Minic
AU - Karine Gloux
AU - Florence Dubois-Brissonnet
AU - Bastien Prost
AU - Audrey Solgadi
AU - Christine Péchoux
AU - Vlad Costache
AU - Marianne De Paepe
AU - Zhu Zhang
AU - Gilles Tessier
AU - Jasmina Vidic
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/08/14
JO - Applied and Environmental Microbiology
DO - 10.1128/aem.01265-26
UR - https://hal.inrae.fr/hal-05778555v1
AB - We investigated the adaptation of the aerotolerant Campylobacter jejuni Bf strain to conditions mimicking the poultry slaughter process. We showed that C. jejuni Bf survives and actively multiplies under combined thermal and oxidative stress. Stress exposure induces cell rounding, loss of motility, remodeling of membrane composition, decreased membrane fluidity, and metabolic reprogramming with increased intracellular ATP levels. While maintaining the lipid composition of its plasma membrane, C. jejuni modulates the lipid composition of its extracellular vesicles when exposed to stress. Notably, stressed C. jejuni cells release extracellular vesicles with increased toxicity toward the epithelial barrier of Caco-2 cells, potentially facilitating invasion of the gut epithelium. IMPORTANCE Campylobacter infections are one of the leading causes of foodborne gastroenteritis worldwide. Campylobacter readily enters the food chain and is transmitted to humans, primarily through the consumption of contaminated poultry meat. The high prevalence of aerotolerant human Campylobacter jejuni isolates suggests a correlation between their ability to survive under aerobic conditions, virulence, and resistance to harsh stress conditions. However, the underlying mechanism remains unclear. Our results show that C. jejuni extracellular vesicles are part of a survival strategy that links environmental adaptation with pathogenicity.
SN - 0099-2240
SN - 1098-5336
ER -