Attachment, ingestion and intracellular killing of Helicobacter pylori by human peripheral blood mononuclear leukocytes and mouse peritoneal inflammatory macrophages.

The different steps of phagocytosis, attachment, ingestion and intracellular killing of cells of Helicobacter pylori strain 17874 (expressing sialic acid-specific haemagglutinin) and cells of H. pylori strain 17875 (expressing non-sialic acid-specific haemagglutinin) have been studied. More cells of sialopositive H. pylori strain 17874 have been found attached to human peripheral blood mononuclear leukocytes (PBM) and mouse peritoneal inflammatory macrophages (PIM) than cells of sialonegative H. pylori strain 17875. Binding of cells of H. pylori strain 17874 has been significantly inhibited by treatment of phagocytes with neuraminidase. Inhibition of adhesion of these bacteria preincubated with foetuin to normal phagocytic cells has also been found. Well adhering cells of H. pylori strain 17874 were more resistant to killing mechanisms of human PBM and mouse PIM than cells of strain 17875. Good, probably sialic acid-specific haemagglutinin dependent, adhesion of H. pylori bacteria to phagocytes can be considered as an important virulence factor which facilitates the pathogen to avoid the defence mechanisms.