We describe a case of septic shock due to Vibrio alginolyticus presenting with fever and bilateral leg pain. Despite intensive management with antibiotics and inotropic agents, the patient died from septic shock 1 day after hospitalization. V. alginolyticus was isolated from both leg wounds and a blood culture. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first reported case of V. alginolyticus bacteremia in Korea.
Bacteremia/etiology/pathology ; Humans ; Korea ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Shock, Septic/*etiology/pathology ; Vibrio Infections/*complications/pathology ; Vibrio alginolyticus/*isolation & purification

Vibrio vulnificus cytolysin forms transmembrane pores that are permeable to calcium ions in pulmonary endothelial cells, and has been suggested as an important virulence factor that sequestrate neutrophils primarily in the lung. To elucidate the mechanism we investigated whether the cytolysin affect the expression of endothelial P-selectin and adhesiveness of pulmonary endothelial cells for neutrophils. The cytolysin increased the adhesiveness of CPAE cell, a pulmonary endothelial cell line, for neutrophils in a concentrationand time-dependent manner. The increase of adhesiveness occurred within several minutes after the cytolysin exposure, persisted up to 90 min, and was not affected by cycloheximide. Furthermore, flow cytometric analyses showed that cytolysin enhanced the level of P-selectin on CPAE cell surface. Therefore, these results suggest that the cytolysin-induced hyperadhesiveness of pulmonary endothelial cells for neutrophils is mediated by the mobilization of endothelial P-selectin to the cell surface.
Animals ; Cattle ; Cell Adhesion/*drug effects ; Cell Line ; Cycloheximide/pharmacology ; Cytotoxins/*toxicity ; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug ; Endothelium, Vascular/cytology/*drug effects/metabolism ; Kinetics ; Neutrophils/*drug effects/pathology ; P-Selectin/*metabolism ; Protein Synthesis Inhibitors/pharmacology ; Pulmonary Artery/cytology/*drug effects/metabolism ; Rats ; Vibrio Infections/etiology/pathology ; Vibrio vulnificus/*pathogenicity

Vibrio vulnificus cytolysin forms transmembrane pores that are permeable to calcium ions in pulmonary endothelial cells, and has been suggested as an important virulence factor that sequestrate neutrophils primarily in the lung. To elucidate the mechanism we investigated whether the cytolysin affect the expression of endothelial P-selectin and adhesiveness of pulmonary endothelial cells for neutrophils. The cytolysin increased the adhesiveness of CPAE cell, a pulmonary endothelial cell line, for neutrophils in a concentrationand time-dependent manner. The increase of adhesiveness occurred within several minutes after the cytolysin exposure, persisted up to 90 min, and was not affected by cycloheximide. Furthermore, flow cytometric analyses showed that cytolysin enhanced the level of P-selectin on CPAE cell surface. Therefore, these results suggest that the cytolysin-induced hyperadhesiveness of pulmonary endothelial cells for neutrophils is mediated by the mobilization of endothelial P-selectin to the cell surface.
Animals ; Cattle ; Cell Adhesion/*drug effects ; Cell Line ; Cycloheximide/pharmacology ; Cytotoxins/*toxicity ; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug ; Endothelium, Vascular/cytology/*drug effects/metabolism ; Kinetics ; Neutrophils/*drug effects/pathology ; P-Selectin/*metabolism ; Protein Synthesis Inhibitors/pharmacology ; Pulmonary Artery/cytology/*drug effects/metabolism ; Rats ; Vibrio Infections/etiology/pathology ; Vibrio vulnificus/*pathogenicity