Molecular interactions between Neisseria meningitidis and its human host.

ABSTRACT: Neisseria meningitidis is a Gram-negative bacterium that asymptomatically colonises the nasopharynx of humans. For an unknown reason, N. meningitidis can cross the nasopharyngeal barrier and invade the bloodstream where it becomes one of the most harmful extracellular bacterial pathogen. This infectious cycle involves the colonisation of two different environments. (a) In the nasopharynx, N. meningitidis grow on the top of mucus-producing epithelial cells surrounded by a complex microbiota. To survive and grow in this challenging environment, the meningococcus expresses specific virulence factors such as polymorphic toxins and MDAΦ. (b) Meningococci have the ability to survive in the extra cellular fluids including blood and cerebrospinal fluid. The interaction of N. meningitidis with huma

SUBMITTER: Coureuil M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6899865 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature