Synonym: bacillary dysentery
Shigella is a genus of aerobic, non-motile, glucose-fermenting, Gram-negative bacilli that are highly contagious.1 Man and apes appear to be the only natural hosts. They cause damage by invasion of the colonic epithelium causing intense inflammation, and by the injection of type III effector proteins into host cells thereby altering their function.2 This requires comparatively few bacteria to cause disease. In vivo experiments suggest that Shigella spp. modulate host-adaptive immune responses and affect the function of T lymphocytes.3
This is a companion discussion topic for the original article at https://patient.info/doctor/gastroenterology/shigellosis