Genetic regulation of host resistance to bacterial infection.

Genetic analysis of host resistance to microbes represents a valuable tool for studies of the pathogenesis of infection. Marked intraspecies differences in resistance or susceptibility among inbred mice are invariably the result of a particular genetic makeup of the host. Appropriate breeding experiments can be designed for the study of the mode of inheritance and of the chromosomal location of the resistance genes. Phenotypic expression of such genetic control can formally be proven by analysis of the linkage of the traits of resistance or susceptibility to their candidate cellular and molecular mechanisms in segregating progeny and in recombinant, mutant, and congenic inbred strains. By division of the course of infection into discrete phases, the genetic control of multiple steps of host response becomes apparent and can be analyzed.