Environmental Control of Virulence Functions and Signal Transduction in Yersinia Enterocolitica

摘要: Among the many species of Yersinia genus, only Y. pestis, pseudotuberculosis and enterocolitica adapted to multiply at expenses a host that is still alive. pestis are essentially rodent pathogens causing systemic diseases. common human pathogen which causes gastrointestinal syndromes various severities, ranging from mild self-limited diarrhea mesenteric adenitis evoking an appendicitis. Although all three yersiniae invade their via different routes, they share tropism for lymphoid tissue remarkable ability resist nonspecific immune response. Their main strategy seems consist in avoiding lysis by complement phagocytosis polymorphonuclear leukocytes macrophages form extracellular microcolonies infected tissue. Yersiniae succeed infecting owing opportune production series invasion antihost proteins. The these proteins tightly controlled sophisticated regulatory networks: this rapidly ensures survival bacteria hostile changing environments. In Yersinia, genes encoding either on chromosome or distributed 70-kb plasmid called pYV, remarkably well conserved among species. enterocolitica, chromosomal mainly involved first steps infection while pYV be devoted resistance against We shall describe virulence functions then focus regulation expression response environmental changes. For sake clarity, we will deal with differences other mentioned throughout. reviews yersiniae, see refs. 1–5.