Mark A. Hanson
Thiago Carvalho'We discovered that the Neisseria gonorrhoeae transcriptional response to PMNs has features in common with the transcriptional response to nutrient metals and oxidative stress, which enhance Neisseria gonorrhoeae resistance to hydrogen peroxide & polymorphonuclear leukocytes.'
#Immunology #HostPathogen
https://journals.plos.org/plospathogens/article?id=10.1371/journal.ppat.1012369#sec010
Dual species transcriptomics reveals conserved metabolic and immunologic processes in interactions between human neutrophils and Neisseria gonorrhoeae
Author summary The bacterium Neisseria gonorrhoeae (Gc) is a public health threat with emerging resistance to antibiotics. Gc induces robust mucosal inflammatory responses with abundant influx of white blood cells called polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNs, neutrophils). While PMNs are highly antimicrobial, Gc survives amongst PMNs for reasons incompletely understood. Here we detail the transcriptional profiles of PMNs from multiple human donors and Gc strains, to investigate this host-pathogen interaction in a comprehensive, unbiased manner. The core transcriptome across Gc exposed to PMNs overlaps transcriptomes of Gc exposed to stresses imparted by immune pressure, specifically nutrient metal starvation. Additionally, core host pathways induced upon PMN exposure to Gc include surface and secreted factors that enable PMN migration and activation. This study uncovers critical features of the Gc-PMN interface to inform how Gc resists innate immune clearance.
Benjamin
MAHanson
