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Listeria monocytogenes is the species of pathogenic bacteria that causes the infection listeriosis. It is a facultative anaerobic bacterium, capable of surviving in the presence or absence of oxygen. It can grow and reproduce inside the host's cells and is one of the most virulent foodborne pathogens, with 20 to 30 percent of food borne listeriosis infections in high-risk individuals may be fatal.
Responsible for an estimated 1,600 illnesses and 260 deaths in the United States annually, listeriosis is the third-leading cause of death among foodborne bacterial pathogens, with fatality rates exceeding even Salmonella and Clostridium botulinum.Image credit: ©Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research
