The effect of antecedent influenza A virus infection on the adherence of Hemophilus influenzae to chinchilla tracheal epithelium.

The adherence of Hemophilus influenzae (type b and nontypable) to ciliated chinchilla respiratory epithelium was investigated using a whole organ perfusion technique. Nontypable H influenzae (NTHi) were shown to be more adherent than type b to these organized and differentiated tracheal organ cultures. Bacteria were found adhering to ciliated cells. Antecedent influenza A virus infection had no effect on adherence of NTHi for at least 48 hours. However, 72 hours after exposure to the virus, infected tissues demonstrated significantly fewer adherent bacteria than did controls. To summarize, influenza A virus infection was not found to augment the initiation of NTHi adherence to ciliated respiratory epithelium in this model.