发布: 2018年02月05日第8卷第3期 DOI: 10.21769/BioProtoc.2720 浏览次数: 7155
评审: Lokesh KalekarBenoit ChassaingAnonymous reviewer(s)
Abstract
Colonization and penetration of the epithelium is the infection-initiating route of mucosal pathogens. The epithelium counteracts infection by eliciting host cell responses while maintaining the mucosal barrier function. The obligate human sexually transmitted bacterium Neisseria gonorrhoeae, or gonococcus (GC) infects the female reproductive tract primarily from the endocervical epithelium. Due to lack of an infection model that mimics all aspects of human infections in the female reproductive tract, GC pathogenesis is poorly understood. This protocol takes advantage of the viability and functional integrity of human cervical tissues propagated in culture to generate an ex vivo infection model. This tissue model maintains the nature of the infection target and environment without any manipulation such as immortalization of epithelial cells by viruses. Using immunofluorescence microscopy, the interaction of GC with the endocervical epithelium was analyzed.
Keywords: Neisseria gonorrhoeae (淋病奈瑟菌)Background
Neisseria gonorrhoeae (GC) infects human genital epithelium causing gonorrhea, a common sexually transmitted infection. Infections in women can lead to severe complications, such as pelvic inflammatory disease, causing fallopian tube scarring and blockage and predisposition to ectopic pregnancy or infertility. Gonorrhea has reemerged as a critical public health issue due to increased prevalence of antibiotic-resistant strains. Because humans are the only host for GC, a lack of an infection model that mimics all aspects of human infections has been a major obstacle to advance our understanding of GC pathogenesis. We have established a human endocervical tissue explant model and immunofluorescence microscopic analysis to examine the mechanism by which GC infect the human endocervix, the primary site for GC infection in women. This ex vivo model maintains the normal cytoarchitecture and tissue integrity of the endocervical epithelium. Using this model and immunofluorescence analysis, we demonstrate that GC colonizes and penetrates into the endocervical tissue, where they potentially cause symptomatic and disseminated gonococcal infection. GC penetration is enabled by the junction disruption and exfoliation of endocervical epithelial cells in response to GC infection. Taken together, our data show that GC infection in endocervical tissue explants resembles GC infection in vivo observed using patients’ biopsies. In combination with immunofluorescent microscopy, this infection model removes an important roadblock to fully understanding the pathogenesis of GC.
Materials and Reagents
Equipment
Software
Procedure
文章信息
版权信息
© 2018 The Authors; exclusive licensee Bio-protocol LLC.
如何引用
Wang, L., Yu, Q., Stein, D. C. and Song, W. (2018). Immunofluorescence Analysis of Human Endocervical Tissue Explants Infected with Neisseria gonorrhoeae. Bio-protocol 8(3): e2720. DOI: 10.21769/BioProtoc.2720.
分类
微生物学 > 微生物-宿主相互作用 > 离体模型
免疫学 > 粘膜免疫学 > 上皮
细胞生物学 > 细胞成像 > 荧光
您对这篇实验方法有问题吗?
在此处发布您的问题,我们将邀请本文作者来回答。同时,我们会将您的问题发布到Bio-protocol Exchange,以便寻求社区成员的帮助。
提问指南
+ 问题描述
写下详细的问题描述,包括所有有助于他人回答您问题的信息(例如实验过程、条件和相关图像等)。
Share
Bluesky
X
Copy link