Infection of Caenorhabditis elegans by Salmonella typhi Ty2

Abstract

Several serovars of Salmonella infect and kill the nematode C. elegans. However, here we report that Salmonella typhi Ty2, a representative strain of this human pathogen, readily infects the intestinal lining of C. elegans without significantly affecting its viability. Our observation suggests extending the use of the C. elegans model system for the study of host parasite relationships, to address problems concerning the biology of S. typhi.