Preventing Foodborne Illness: Shigellosis

Shigella is a Gram-negative, nonmotile, non-sporeforming, rod-shaped bacterium capable of causing disease in humans. Disease occurs when virulent Shigella organisms are consumed and invade the intestinal mucosa, resulting in tissue destruction. Some Shigella strains produce enterotoxin and Shiga-toxin (very much like the verotoxin of E. coli O157:H7). Shigella poisoning, also known as “shigellosis,” is typically self-limiting, treatable, and most people recover quickly. This document is FSHN05-17, one of a series of the Food Science and Human Nutrition Department, UF/IFAS Extension. Originally published September 2005. FSHN0517/FS128: Preventing Foodborne Illness: Shigellosis (ufl.edu)