Time-resolved analysis of Staphylococcus aureus invading the endothelial barrier

Autor: Elisa J.M. Raineri, Harita Yedavally, Anna Salvati, Jan Maarten van Dijl
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2020
Předmět:
Zdroj: Virulence, Vol 11, Iss 1, Pp 1623-1639 (2020)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 2150-5594
2150-5608
21505594
DOI: 10.1080/21505594.2020.1844418
Popis: Staphylococcus aureus is a leading cause of infections world-wide. Once this pathogen has reached the bloodstream, it can invade different parts of the human body by crossing the endothelial barrier. Infected endothelial cells may be lysed by bacterial products, but the bacteria may also persist intracellularly, where they are difficult to eradicate with antibiotics and cause relapses of infection. Our present study was aimed at investigating the fate of methicillin resistant S. aureus (MRSA) isolates of the USA300 lineage with different epidemiological origin inside endothelial cells. To this end, we established two in vitro infection models based on primary human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC), which mimic conditions of the endothelium when infection occurs. For comparison, the laboratory strain S. aureus HG001 was used. As shown by flow cytometry and fluorescence- or electron microscopy, differentiation of HUVEC into a cell barrier with cell-cell junctions sets limits to the rates of bacterial internalization, the numbers of internalized bacteria, the percentage of infected cells, and long-term intracellular bacterial survival. Clear strain-specific differences were observed with the HG001 strain infecting the highest numbers of HUVEC and displaying the longest intracellular persistence, whereas the MRSA strains reproduced faster intracellularly. Nonetheless, all internalized bacteria remained confined in membrane-enclosed LAMP-1-positive lysosomal or vacuolar compartments. Once internalized, the bacteria had a higher propensity to persist within the differentiated endothelial cell barrier, probably because internalization of lower numbers of bacteria was less toxic. Altogether, our findings imply that intact endothelial barriers are more likely to sustain persistent intracellular infection.
Databáze: Directory of Open Access Journals