Norville I H, Hartley M G, Martinez E, Cantet F, Bonazzi M, Atkins T P
Defence Science and Technology Laboratory, Porton Down, Salisbury SP4 0JQ, UK.
CNRS, UMR5236 CPBS, Montpellier 34293, France.
Microbiology (Reading). 2014 Jun;160(Pt 6):1175-1181. doi: 10.1099/mic.0.077230-0. Epub 2014 Mar 27.
Coxiella burnetii is a Gram-negative intracellular bacterium and is the causative agent of the zoonotic disease Q fever. Several rodent and non-human primate models of virulent phase I C. burnetii [Nine Mile (NM)I] have been developed, and have been used to determine the efficacy of antibiotics and vaccine candidates. However, there are several advantages to using insect models to study host-microbe interactions, such as reduced animal use, lowered cost and ease of manipulation in high containment. In addition, many laboratories use the avirulent phase II C. burnetii clone (NMII) to study cellular interactions and identify novel virulence determinants using genetic manipulation. We report that larvae of the greater wax moth, Galleria mellonella, were susceptible to infection with both C. burnetii NMI and NMII. Following subcutaneous infection, we report that intracellular bacteria were present within haemocytes and that larval death occurred in a dose-dependent manner. Additionally, we have used the model to characterize the role of the type 4 secretion system in C. burnetii NMII and to determine antibiotic efficacy in a non-mammalian model of disease.
伯纳特柯克斯体是一种革兰氏阴性细胞内细菌，是人畜共患病Q热的病原体。已经建立了几种强毒I相伯纳特柯克斯体[九里（NM）I]的啮齿动物和非人类灵长类动物模型，并用于确定抗生素和候选疫苗的疗效。然而，使用昆虫模型研究宿主-微生物相互作用有几个优点，如减少动物使用量、降低成本以及在高防护条件下易于操作。此外，许多实验室使用无毒II相伯纳特柯克斯体克隆（NMII）来研究细胞相互作用，并通过基因操作鉴定新的毒力决定因素。我们报告称，大蜡螟幼虫对伯纳特柯克斯体NMI和NMII感染均敏感。皮下感染后，我们发现血细胞内存在细胞内细菌，且幼虫死亡呈剂量依赖性。此外，我们利用该模型表征了4型分泌系统在伯纳特柯克斯体NMII中的作用，并在非哺乳动物疾病模型中确定了抗生素疗效。
