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Growth of Neisseria gonorrhoeae in CMP-N-acetylneuraminic acid inhibits nonopsonic (opacity-associated outer membrane protein-mediated) interactions with human neutrophils
Journal article   Open access   Peer reviewed

Growth of Neisseria gonorrhoeae in CMP-N-acetylneuraminic acid inhibits nonopsonic (opacity-associated outer membrane protein-mediated) interactions with human neutrophils

R F Rest and J V Frangipane
Infection and immunity, v 60(3), pp 989-997
Mar 1992
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1128/iai.60.3.989-997.1992
PMID: 1541573
Featured in Collection :   UN Sustainable Development Goals @ Drexel
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https://doi.org/10.1128/iai.60.3.989-997.1992View
Published, Version of Record (VoR)Open Access (License Unspecified),  Open

Abstract

Gonococci possessing certain opacity-associated (Opa) outer membrane proteins adhere to and are phagocytosed by human neutrophils in the absence of serum. Recently, it has been shown that serum-sensitive strains of Neisseria gonorrhoeae possessing the appropriate lipooligosaccharide phenotype become serum resistant when grown in the presence of CMP-N-acetylneuraminic acid (CMP-NANA) because of sialylation of their lipooligosaccharide. We investigated whether such sialylation affects nonopsonic (antibody- and complement-independent) interactions of gonococci with human neutrophils in vitro. We grew Opa+ gonococci in the presence of up to 50 micrograms of CMP-NANA per ml, incubated them with neutrophils in vitro, and measured their abilities to adhere to neutrophils, stimulate neutrophil luminol-dependent chemiluminescence (LDCL), and be phagocytically killed by neutrophils. Growth in CMP-NANA dramatically inhibited (in a dose-dependent manner) the ability of Opa+ gonococci to adhere to neutrophils and stimulate neutrophil LDCL. Growth of Opa+ gonococci in 50 micrograms of CMP-NANA per ml appeared to delay, but did not inhibit, their killing by neutrophils. Sialidase treatment of sialylated Opa+ gonococci, i.e., gonococci grown with CMP-NANA, totally restored their abilities to adhere to neutrophils and stimulate neutrophil LDCL. Opa- gonococci grown in the presence of 50 micrograms of CMP-NANA per ml and opsonized with fresh human serum bound to neutrophils only about 30% less efficiently than did Opa- gonococci grown without CMP-NANA and opsonized. The results of our studies show that sialylated Opa+ gonococci have dramatically reduced nonopsonic interactions with neutrophils. Some gonococcal strains may resist killing by human neutrophils in vivo by such a mechanism.

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Web of Science research areas
Immunology
Infectious Diseases
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