Salmonellosis (diseases caused by Salmonella species) have several clinical
manifestations, ranging from gastroenteritis (food poisoning) to typhoid (
enteric) fever and bacteraemia. Salmonella species (especially Salmonella t
yphimurium) also represent organisms that call be readily used to investiga
te the complex interplay that occurs between a pathogen and its host, both
in vitro and in vivo. The ease with which S. typhimurium can be cultivated
and genetically manipulated, in combination with the availability of tissue
culture models and animal models, has made S. typhimurium a desirable orga
nism for such studies. In this review, we focus on Salmonella interactions
with its host cells, both in tissue culture (in vitro) and in relevant anim
al models (in vivo), and compare results obtained using these different mod
els. The recent advent of sophisticated imaging and molecular genetic tools
has facilitated studying the events that occur. in disease, thereby confir
ming tissue culture results, yet identifying new questions that need to be
addressed in relevant disease settings.