Sporadic case of listeriosis associated with the consumption of a Listeria monocytogenes-contaminated 'Camembert' cheese.

Listeria monocytogenes is an intracellular gram-positive organism responsible for severe infections in both humans and animals. Whereas the food-borne transmission of listeriosis was demonstrated in several outbreaks, most cases of listeriosis occur sporadically and are rarely linked with consumption of contaminated foods. In this paper a case of septicaemia with L. monocytogenes in a 73-year-old immunocompromised man is described. Evidence for the association of this case of listeriosis with the consumption of a contaminated 'Camembert' cheese is provided by serotyping, esterase typing, DNA macrorestriction patterns analysis and level of virulence of the isolated strains for mice.