Chlamydia-containing spheres are a novel and predominant form of egress by the pathogen Chlamydia psittaci.

ABSTRACT: The egress of intracellular bacteria from host cells and cellular tissues is a critical process during the infection cycle. This process is essential for bacteria to spread inside the host and can influence the outcome of an infection. For the obligate intracellular Gram-negative zoonotic bacterium Chlamydia psittaci, little is known about the mechanisms resulting in bacterial egress from the infected epithelium. Here, we describe and characterize Chlamydia-containing spheres (CCSs), a novel and predominant type of non-lytic egress utilized by Chlamydia spp. CCSs are spherical, low-phase contrast structures surrounded by a phosphatidylserine-exposing membrane with specific barrier functions. They contain infectious progeny and morphologically impaired cellular organell

SUBMITTER: Scholz J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11323529 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature