A serious infection of dietary origin that is caused by the Listeria monocytogenes bacterium, listeriosis is associated with severe clinical symptoms and a high mortality rate in individuals with weakened immune systems. INRA scientists, working in collaboration with their colleagues at the Institut Pasteur, have demonstrated the novel capacity of L. monocytogenes to generate dormant intracellular forms that could be harboured, unsuspected, by hosts. These findings are published on Nov. 30, 2017 in PLoS Pathogens.