Figure 6. The transgene protects against bacterial challenges.

(a). Wild-type (WT; n = 14) and transgenic (Tg, n = 11) mice were infected by oral gavage with 100 μL of an overnight culture of C. rodentium (~3.6 × 10⁹ CFU) and sacrificed at 10 dpi. Feces were collected from live mice at 3, 5, and 10 dpi and C. rodentium was counted. (b). The colon weight/length ratio was calculated at 10 dpi. (c). WT (11) and Tg (8) mice were infected by oral gavage with 100 μL of an overnight culture of the clinical AIEC strain 06362³³ containing ~1 × 10⁹ CFU bacteria on days 1 and 2, and were sacrificed on day 7. Liver and spleen homogenates were serially diluted in PBS and plated to determine the translocation of the total cultivable bacteria.