According to the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, Salmonella causes about 1.2 million illnesses, 23,000 hospitalizations and 450 deaths in the United States alone every year. Salmonella infections are caused via contaminated foods, which leads to fever, diarrhea and abdominal cramps.

A research team from Stanford University School of Medicine have found a by-product named Propionate secreted by Bacteroides, which inhibits the Salmonella growth in the intestine. This research finding might provide a clue in order to develop better therapeutic measures. The study was published in Cell Host and Microbe.

Propionate does not generate the immune response to destroy the pathogen. But it prolongs the time of pathogen multiplication, by increasing the internal acidity levels.

Denise Monack, Ph.D., professor of microbiology and immunology and the study investigator of the study said, "Humans differ in their response to exposure to bacterial infections. Some people get infected and some don't, some get sick and others stay healthy, and some spread the infection while others clear it; It has been a real mystery to understand why we see these differences among people. Our finding may shed some light on this phenomenon."

Amanda Jacobson, the lead author and a graduate student in microbiology and immunology said, "The gut microbiota is an incredibly complex ecosystem. Trillions of bacteria, viruses and fungi form complex interactions with the host and each other in a densely packed, heterogeneous environment; Because of this, it is very difficult to identify the unique molecules from specific bacteria in the gut that are responsible for specific characteristics like resistance to pathogens."

Monack further stated, "Reducing the use of antibiotics is an added benefit because overuse of antibiotics leads to increased incidence of antibiotic-resistant microbes."