Contribution of hemolysin and phospholipase activity to cytolytic properties and viability of Listeria monocytogenes.

The life cycle of Listeria monocytogenes strongly depends on cytolysin which facilitates the pathogen's escape from the endosome. This process is very ineffective in the absence of phospholipases. In this study we investigated the molecular mechanism of cooperation between hemolysin and phospholipases. We propose a model involving interactions between proteins that increase the affinity of cytolysins for the membrane as well direct enzymatic enhancement of lysis.