Bacterial Infections and Mycoses Commons^™

Burkholderia Pseudomallei Enters The Brain And Spinal Cord Via The Trigeminal Nerve, Heidi Walkden, James St John, Lynn Nazareth, Jenny Ekberg

Jenny Ekberg

Background

The trigeminal nerve is the largest cranial nerve responsible for sensation in the face and motor functions such as chewing. It constitutes a direct route from the nasal cavity into the brain (Fig. 1). Despite this, only a handful of microorganisms are thought to infect the brain via this route.

The tropical disease melioidosis caused by Burkholderia pseudomallei is endemic to the northern Australia and south-east Asia. The main route of transmission is via inhalation of droplets and soil. The Australian variant can result in brain infection, but the mechanism of infection is unknown.

Here, we investigated whether …