Friedland I R, Paris M M, Hickey S, Shelton S, Olsen K, Paton J C, McCracken G H
Department of Pediatrics, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, USA.
J Infect Dis. 1995 Sep;172(3):805-9. doi: 10.1093/infdis/172.3.805.
The aim of this study was to determine the role of pneumolysin, an intracellular toxin of Streptococcus pneumoniae, in the pathogenesis of pneumococcal meningitis. Recombinant pneumolysin (1 microgram), when injected intracisternally into rabbits, resulted in a brisk inflammatory response. However, a pneumolysin-deficient strain of S. pneumoniae caused meningeal inflammation in rabbits indistinguishable from that induced by the parent pneumolysin-producing strain. Furthermore, similar enhancement of meningeal inflammation occurred after ampicillin therapy in animals infected with either the parent strain or the pneumolysin-deficient mutant. These results suggest that although pneumolysin can stimulate the inflammatory cascade in the central nervous system, it is not necessary for the pathogenesis of meningeal inflammation nor does it play a role in postantibiotic enhancement of meningeal inflammation.
本研究的目的是确定肺炎链球菌的一种细胞内毒素——肺炎溶血素在肺炎球菌性脑膜炎发病机制中的作用。将重组肺炎溶血素（1微克）脑池内注射到兔子体内时，会引发强烈的炎症反应。然而，一株肺炎溶血素缺陷型肺炎链球菌在兔子身上引起的脑膜炎症与亲本产肺炎溶血素菌株所诱导的炎症并无差异。此外，在用氨苄西林治疗感染亲本菌株或肺炎溶血素缺陷型突变体的动物后，脑膜炎症出现了类似的增强。这些结果表明，虽然肺炎溶血素可刺激中枢神经系统中的炎症级联反应，但它对于脑膜炎症的发病机制并非必需，在抗生素治疗后脑膜炎症的增强过程中也不起作用。
