1887

Abstract

SUMMARY: Attempts to study quantitatively the phagocytosis of gonococci from urethral pus failed because of the small numbers of organisms and technical difficulties. However, gonococci from chambers implanted subcutaneously in guinea pigs, which were similar to gonococci from urethral pus in their resistance to killing by human serum, were obtained in sufficient quantities for comparison in phagocytosis tests with the grown strain from which they were derived.

Microscopic and viable counts of gonococci in phagocytes showed that grown organisms (strain ) were readily phagocytosed by human polymorphonuclear phagocytes. There was little difference between organisms and the grown organisms (strain ) in resistance to ingestion. There was, however, a marked difference in the intracellular survival of strains and during the first hour of phagocytosis. Whereas organisms survived well, many organisms were killed. Subsequently, strain and the survivors of the strain inoculum responded similarly to the intracellular bactericidins. These results were supported by electron microscopy of infected phagocytes.

Resistance of gonococci to ingestion and digestion by human phagocytes seem to be important facets of the pathogenesis of gonorrhoea.

Loading

Article metrics loading...

/content/journal/micro/10.1099/00221287-96-2-341
1976-10-01
2024-04-25
Loading full text...

Full text loading...

/deliver/fulltext/micro/96/2/mic-96-2-341.html?itemId=/content/journal/micro/10.1099/00221287-96-2-341&mimeType=html&fmt=ahah

References

  1. Arko R. J. 1972; Neisseria gonorrhoeae: experimental infection in laboratory animals. Science; New York: 1771200–1201
    [Google Scholar]
  2. Dilworth J. A., Hendley J. O., Mandell G. L. 1975; Attachment and ingestion of gonococci by human neutrophils. Infection and Immunity 11:512–516
    [Google Scholar]
  3. Gibbs D. L., Roberts R. B. 1975; The interaction in vitro between human polymorphonuclear leukocytes and Neisseria gonorrhoeae cultivated in the chick embryo. Journal of Experimental Medicine 141:I55–I7I
    [Google Scholar]
  4. Kellogg D. S.Jr Peacock W. L.Jr Deacon W. E., Brown L., Pirkle C. I. 1963; Neisseria gonorrhoeae. I. Virulence genetically linked to clonal variation. Journal of Bacteriology 85:1274–1279
    [Google Scholar]
  5. Kellogg D. S.Jr Cohen I. R., Norins L. C., Schroeter A. L., Reising G. 1968; Neisseria gonorrhoeae. II. Colonial variation and pathogenicity during 35 months in vitro. Journal of Bacteriology 96:596–605
    [Google Scholar]
  6. Novotny P., Short J. A., Walker P. D. 1975; An electron-microscope study of naturally occurring and cultured cells of Neisseria gonorrhoeae. Journal of Medical Microbiology 8:413–427
    [Google Scholar]
  7. Ofek I., Beachey E. H., Bisno A. L. 1974; Resistance of Neisseria gonorrhoeae to phagocytosis: relationship to colonial morphology and surface pili. Journal of Infectious Diseases 129:310–315
    [Google Scholar]
  8. Penn C. W., Veale D. R., Sen D., Witt K., Smith H. 1975; Altered pathogenic, morphological and antigenic properties of Neisseria gonorrhoeae adapted to growth in guinea pig subcutaneous chambers. Proceedings of the Society for General Microbiology 357
    [Google Scholar]
  9. Penn C. W., Sen D., Veale D. R., Witt K., Parsons N. J., Smith H. 1976; Morphological, biological and antigenic properties of Neisseria gonorrhoeae adapted to growth in guinea pig subcutaneous chambers. Journal of General Microbiology (in the Press)
    [Google Scholar]
  10. Punsalang A. P.Jr Sawyer W. D. 1973; Role of pili in the virulence of Neisseria gonorrhoeae. Infection and Immunity 8:255–263
    [Google Scholar]
  11. Smith H., Keppie J., Pearce J. H., Fuller R., Williams A. E. 1961; The chemical basis of the virulence of Brucella abortus. I. Isolation of Br. abortus from bovine foetal tissue. British Journal of Experimental Pathology 42:631–637
    [Google Scholar]
  12. Swanson J., Sparks E., Zeligs B., Siam M. A., Parrott C. 1974; Studies on gonococcus infection. V. Observations on in vitro interactions of gonococci and human neutrophils. Infection and Immunity 10:633–644
    [Google Scholar]
  13. Veale D. R., Smith H., Witt K., Marshall R. B. 1975; Differential ability of colonial types of Neisseria gonorrhoeae to produce infection and an inflammatory response in subcutaneous perforated plastic chambers in guinea pigs and rabbits. Journal of Medical Microbiology 8:325–335
    [Google Scholar]
  14. Veale D. R., Finch H., Smith H., Witt K. 1976; Penetration of penicillin into human phagocytes containing Neisseria gonorrhoeae: intracellular survival and growth at optimum concentrations of antibiotic. Journal for General Microbiology 95:353–363
    [Google Scholar]
  15. Ward M. E., Watt P. J., Glynn A. A. 1970; Gonococci in urethral exudates possess a virulence factor lost on subculture. Nature; London: 227382–383
    [Google Scholar]
  16. Ward M. E., Glynn A. A., Watt P. J. 1972; The fate of gonococci in polymorphonuclear leukocytes: an electron microscopic study of the natural disease. British Journal of Experimental Pathology 53:289–294
    [Google Scholar]
  17. Witt K., Veale D. R., Smith H. 1976; Resistance to ingestion and digestion of Neisseria gonorrhoeae% by phagocytes of human buffy coat. Journal of Medical Microbiology 9:1–12
    [Google Scholar]
http://instance.metastore.ingenta.com/content/journal/micro/10.1099/00221287-96-2-341
Loading
/content/journal/micro/10.1099/00221287-96-2-341
Loading

Data & Media loading...

This is a required field
Please enter a valid email address
Approval was a Success
Invalid data
An Error Occurred
Approval was partially successful, following selected items could not be processed due to error