Microbial Transmission

Microbial transmission, the processes by which microbes transit to new environments, is a significant and broad-reaching concept with applications throughout the biological sciences. This collection of reviews, edited by an international team of experts studying and working across a range of disciplines, explores transmission not just as an idea in disease but as a fundamental biological process that acts in all domains of nature and exerts its force on disparate size scales, from the micro to the macro, and across units of time as divergent as a single bacterial replication cycle and the entire course of evolution.

In five sections, this overview

• Defines the concept of transmission and covers basic processes of transmission, including causality, control strategies, fitness costs, virulence, and selection
• Presents numerous combinations of transmission scenarios across the bacterial, animal, and human interface
• Examines transmission as the defining characteristic of infectious disease
• Presents methods for experimentally verifying and quantifying transmission episodes
• Concludes with important theoretical and modeling approaches

Anyone studying or working in microbial colonization, evolution, pathogenicity, antimicrobial resistance, or public health will benefit from a deeper understanding of Microbial Transmission.

Preface: Transmission and Interaction xiii

About the Editors xvii

I. INTRODUCTION

1 Origin, History, and Meanings of the Word Transmission 3
Joaquín Villalba, Fernando A. Navarro, and Francisco Cortés

II. BASIC PROCESS OF TRANSMISSION

2 Causality in Biological Transmission: Forces and Energies 17
Fernando Baquero

3 Natural and Artificial Strategies to Control the Conjugative Transmission of Plasmids 33
María Getino and Fernando de la Cruz

4 Fitness Costs of Plasmids: A Limit to Plasmid Transmission 65
Alvaro San Millan and R. Craig MacLean

5 Basic Processes in Salmonella-Host-Interactions: Within-Host Evolution and the Transmission of the Virulent Genotype 81
Médéric Diard and Wolf-Dietrich Hardt

6 Salmonella Intracellular Lifestyles and Their Impact in Host-to-Host Transmission 95
M. Graciela Pucciarelli and Francisco García-del Portillo

7 Selection and Transmission of Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria 117
Dan I. Andersson and Diamaid Hughes

III. SCENARIO OF TRANSMISSION

8 Ecology and Evolution of Chromosomal Gene Transfer between Environmental Microorganisms and Pathogens 141
José Luis Martínez

9 Food-to-Humans Bacterial Transmission 161
Patrícia Antunes, Carla Novais, and Luísa Peixe

10 Insects and the Transmission of Bacterial Agents 195
Maureen Laroche, Didier Raoult, and Philippe Parola

IV. PATIENT-TO-PATIENT TRANSMISSION

11 Biology of Hand-to-Hand Bacterial Transmission 205
Rosa del Campo, Laura Martínez-García, Ana María Sánchez-Díaz, and Fernando Baquero

12 Transmission Surveillance for Antimicrobial-Resistant Organisms in the Health System 215
Johann D. D. Pitout

13 The Evolution of Genotyping Strategies to Detect, Analyze and Control Transmission of Tuberculosis 229
Darío García de Viedma and Laura Pérez-Lago

14 Breaking Transmission with Vaccines: The Case of Tuberculosis 249
Jesus Gonzalo-Asensio, Nacho Aguilo, Dessislava Marinova, and Carlos Martin

15 Transmission, Human Population, and Pathogenicity: the EBOLA Case in Point 263
Rafael Delgado and Fernando Simón V.

EXPERIMENTAL AND THEORETICAL MODES OF TRANSMISSION

16 Quantifying Transmission 281
Mark Woolhouse

17 Experimental Epidemiology of Antibiotic Resistance: Looking for an Appropriate Animal Model System 291 Pablo Llop, Amparo LaTorre, and Andrés Moya

18 Transmission in the Origins of Bacterial Diversity, from Ecotypes to Phyla 311
Frederick M. Cohan

19 Tracking the Rules of Transmission and Introgression with Networks 345
Chloé Vigliotti, Cédric Bicep, Eric Bapteste, Philippe Lopez, and Eduardo Corel

Index 367

At A Glance

Microbial transmission, the processes by which microbes transit to new environments, is a significant and broad-reaching concept with applications throughout the biological sciences. This collection of reviews, edited by an international team of experts studying and working across a range of disciplines, explores transmission not just as an idea in disease but as a fundamental biological process that acts in all domains of nature and exerts its force on disparate size scales, from the micro to the macro, and across units of time as divergent as a single bacterial replication cycle and the entire course of evolution.

Description

This multi-authored book is a compilation of reviews of various aspects of microbial transmission, inspired and partially based on the 26th International Scientific Symposium "Transmission" in 2015.

Purpose

Although not explicitly stated, this book aims to highlight transmission as a key attribute of microbial life worthy of detailed understanding and further research. Readers who are already seriously interested in microbial transmission should welcome this unique book dedicated to reviews of select transmission topics.

Audience

The targeted audience appears to be those who take a special interest in studying the science of microbial transmission, whether microbiologists, public health professionals, infectious disease specialists, or others who just find the subject intriguing and fascinating. Many of the authors and contributors are recognized authorities in the field.

Features

This book begins with a chapter exploring the origin, history, and meanings of the word transmission, followed by four major sections that cover the basic process of transmission, scenario of transmission, patient-to-patient transmission, and experimental and theoretical modes of transmission. Although parts of description of the biology of conjugative plasmid transmission may seem highly technical, the authors also nicely explain the application of this knowledge to devising potential strategies that could artificially inhibit conjugation and transmission of important pathogenic genes. For example, after describing the details of necessary steps in the horizontal transmission of genes through conjugation, they discuss the potential inhibition of conjugation by readily available compounds such as chlorpromazine. The discussion of various modes of microbial transmission, such as from food or insects to humans, is particularly informative. Although transmission of antibiotic-resistant bacteria from food-producing animals to humans is well known, the interplay between bacteria and the food matrix (e.g., peanut butter and salmonellosis) highlighted in the book may not be. The section on patient-to-patient transmission of pathogens appropriately covers the biology of hand-to-hand bacterial transmission, while exploring tuberculosis and Ebola transmission and preventive strategies, including the development of promising vaccines. The section on experimental and theoretical modes of transmission discusses topics ranging from conventional mathematical models of disease transmission to a somewhat esoteric use of German cockroach (Blatella germanica) in an experimental model for transmission of antibiotic-resistant organisms to humans. Despite the technical aspects of several chapters, related concepts are explained in clear and easily understandable terms. Few caveats are worthy of mention. As with many books, the inherent delay between authors' contributions and eventual book publication makes it imperative for readers to ensure that the information remains current. In addition, certain important aspects of microbial transmission seem to have been largely overlooked. For example, the increasingly important role of patient environment in the transmission of multidrug resistant organisms in healthcare facilities is not discussed in any detail. Similarly, the phenomenon of translocation of organisms from the host GI tract to other parts of the body, particularly in immunocompromised hosts, does not receive due attention. The potential importance of trehalose — a "natural food additive" — in the causation of Clostridium difficile disease due to epidemic strains also might have been discussed in the context of the interplay between potential pathogens and the food matrix.

Assessment

Understanding the complexities of microbial transmission is key to devising creative strategies for combating infectious diseases. Although not a comprehensive treatise, this book provides foundational knowledge necessary for deeper understanding and advancing the science of microbial transmission.

Review Questionnaire

Range /Question /Score

1-10 Are the author's objectives met? 8

1-10 Rate the worthiness of those objectives. 8

1-5 Is this written at an appropriate level? 5

1-5 Is there significant duplication? (1=significant, 5=insignificant) 4

1-5 Are there significant omissions? (1=significant, 5=insignificant) 2

1-5 Rate the authority of the authors. 3

1-5 Are there sufficient illustrations? 5

1-5 Rate the pedagogic value of the illustrations. 4

1-5 Rate the print quality of the illustrations. 4

1-5 Are there sufficient references? 5

1-5 Rate the currency of the references. 2

1-5 Rate the pertinence of the references. 4

1-5 Rate the helpfulness of the index. 2

1-5 If important in this specialty, rate the physical appearance of the book N/A

1-10 Is this a worthwhile contribution to the field? 8

1-10 If this is a 2nd or later edition, is this new edition needed? N/A

-Farrin Manian, MD, MPH(Massachusetts General Hospital)

Microbial Transmission

First Edition

Microbial transmission, the processes by which microbes transit to new environments, is a significant and broad-reaching concept with applications throughout the biological sciences. This collection of reviews, edited by an international team of experts studying and working across a range of disciplines, explores transmission not just as an idea in disease but as a fundamental biological process that acts in all domains of nature and exerts its force on disparate size scales, from the micro to the macro, and across units of time as divergent as a single bacterial replication cycle and the entire course of evolution.

In five sections, this overview

• Defines the concept of transmission and covers basic processes of transmission, including causality, control strategies, fitness costs, virulence, and selection
• Presents numerous combinations of transmission scenarios across the bacterial, animal, and human interface
• Examines transmission as the defining characteristic of infectious disease
• Presents methods for experimentally verifying and quantifying transmission episodes
• Concludes with important theoretical and modeling approaches

Anyone studying or working in microbial colonization, evolution, pathogenicity, antimicrobial resistance, or public health will benefit from a deeper understanding of Microbial Transmission.