Galleria mellonella: A model of infection to discern novel mechanisms of pathogenesis of non-toxigenic Vibrio parahaemolyticus strains

Vibrio parahaemolyticus is a leading cause of raw seafood-associated bacterial gastroenteritis in the world. Its pathogenesis is likely to be multifactorial, although the most characteristic virulence-associated factors are the toxins TDH and TRH, in addition to the Type-III Secretion System-2, which codes for diverse effectors involved in cytotoxicity and enterotoxicity. However, diarrhea cases produced by clinical strains lacking all of these main virulence factors (non-toxigenic strains) have been reported in many countries and they can represent up to 9-10% of the clinical isolations. So far, although there have been significant advances in the description of the virulence factors of V. parahaemolyticus, the ability of non-toxigenic strains to cause illness is still not completely understood. To elucidate this question it is necessary to have adequate infection models. The susceptibility of G. mellonella to the infection with non-toxigenic strains seems to be the response to identifying new virulence factors and consequently providing new insights into mechanisms of the virulence of non-toxigenic strains. This new model means an invaluable contribution to public health, since the understanding of virulence in strains lacking the traditional major toxins is essential to detect these strains present in waters and marine products and avoid possible food-borne infection.